Woman declared dead in dowry case found alive after two years in Madhya Pradesh

Woman declared dead in dowry case found alive after two years in Madhya Pradesh

A 20-year-old woman from Uttar Pradesh’s Auraiya district, who was presumed dead for the past two years, has been found alive in Madhya Pradesh, police confirmed on Tuesday.

The woman had disappeared from her marital home in 2023, barely 18 months after her marriage. With no trace of her, her family filed a missing complaint on October 23, 2023. Soon after, alleging that she had been murdered for dowry, her relatives approached the court. Following its directions, police registered a case of dowry death under Section 304B of the Indian Penal Code against her husband and six members of his family.

For two years, the husband’s family faced trial in the case. Meanwhile, Special Operations Group teams and police surveillance units continued their search. Their efforts finally paid off when the missing woman was located in Madhya Pradesh.

Auraiya Circle Officer Ashok Kumar Singh confirmed the breakthrough. “The woman went missing a year and a half after her marriage. On her family’s complaint and subsequent court orders, a dowry death case was lodged against her husband and in-laws. After sustained investigation, we traced her to Madhya Pradesh. She was brought back to Auraiya on October 1, and further probe is underway,” he said.

Authorities are now investigating what the woman was doing in Madhya Pradesh for the past two years and why she neither contacted her family nor her husband’s household.

Police said the discovery is likely to alter the course of the ongoing dowry death trial, raising serious questions about the allegations and the circumstances of her disappearance.