After 8 years of domestic abuse, Indian woman kills herself in US after posting clip of ordeal

A 30-year-old Indian Sikh woman killed herself at her house in Richmond, New York, following “years of domestic abuse” and exploitation by her husband and in-laws.

Hours before taking her life, Mandeep Kaur recorded a video of herself where she was heard detailing her ordeal. In the nearly five-minute-long clip, she said that her husband, Ranjodhbeer Singh Sandhu—who works as a truck driver—used to beat her up daily.

Her clip was shared on Instagram by The Kaur Movement, an organisation that works for sexual and domestic abuse victims, focusing on the Sikh community. The video quickly became viral on Twitter and Facebookwhere several enraged people commented on the stigmas in society.

“I tried my best, but I cannot take the daily beatings now. For eight years, I have been tolerating his bad behaviour, hoping that he will mend his ways one day,” the mother of two daughters — aged 6 and 4 — was heard saying in Punjabi as she wept.

Mandeep and her husband are from northern state Uttar Pradesh’s Bijnor region. She also claimed that her husband had many extramarital affairs over the years.

“After seeing the torture inflicted on me, my father got him (Sandhu) booked in a case. Then he pleaded… and got off,” Mandeep said, adding that her husband once held her hostage for five days and beat her up.

She further said that she didn’t want to leave her two daughters behind “but now I cannot tolerate this torture anymore and am taking this extreme step”.

"Daddy, I am going to die, please forgive me," she said. Mandeep Kaur died on August 4.

Mandeep’s father, Jaspal Singh, has filed a case against his daughter's in-laws, who live in India and Sandhu, who is in US, at Bijnor police station. He is currently seeking custody of his two granddaughters.

The Indian mission in New York has said that it is in touch with the authorities and assured to help the grieving family.

Meanwhile, many videos—CCTV footage from the couple’s home—of Sandhu torturing his wife were shared online. In one such purported video, he can be seen assaulting and strangulating Mandeep while their daughters are heard crying.

In another such clip, Sandhu was seen abusing her wife over wanting a son, and not daughters.

In a statement, UK-based NGO Sikh Women's Aid, which works against abuse within the Sikh and Punjabi communities, expressed grief, saying, “She describes a life of abuse, belittling and violence.”