The woman is tied to a pole inside the house with an iron chain around her neck. Her husband allegedly used a red-hot iron rod on her body, beat her repeatedly and warned her not to go to the police.
The woman reached a police station in Madhya Pradesh’s Rajgarh district on Friday night with a tired, bruised body and bloody feet. Although the woman was still hanging by the iron chain around her neck. Her husband kept her imprisoned with these chains.
The police eventually arrested her husband, Sardar Singh Tanwar. But how did the victim go to the police?
The victim, Mangibai Tanwar, told the police that the torture started after her husband returned home after consuming alcohol on the evening of June 10.
After dinner her husband started abusing her. When Mangiba protested, he went outside and cut branches to make sticks. Brutal beatings started from here.
The victim Mangibai Tanwar told the police that the torture started on June 10 when her husband came home drunk. After dinner her husband started abusing her. When Mangibai protested, her husband went outside the house and cut a branch of a tree to make a stick. Then the brutal beating began.
They beat Mangibai with sticks. He is repeatedly beaten and threatened. Unable to bear the torture, Mangibai decided to go to the police. He quietly left the house in the dark of night. He walked for hours towards Khilchipur police station. But before going there, her husband catches her near a temple. They beat him again and forced him to go to the village.
After returning home, he was subjected to more unspeakable torture. Mangibai alleged that her husband tied an iron chain around her neck and tied the other end to a pole. The husband then told her, “Now let’s see how you go to the police station and file a complaint against me.”
The woman alleged that her husband pressed her body by heating an iron rod on a gas stove. He said the hot rod was pressed into his waist, hip and right thigh. No one came forward to help him even though he screamed in pain.
Mangibai was kept indoors for the next 24 hours. He was not allowed to go out or talk to anyone.
Mangibai’s husband tried to gather the villagers together to call the panchayat and pressure her to abandon the plan to approach the police. The woman then feigned consent for fear of further violence and abuse. In fact, he was looking for an opportunity to escape.
Her husband left home to call the villagers for the proposed panchayat. The woman took this opportunity. A stone fell in Mangibai’s eye. Then he picked up the stone and started hitting the chained lock. Despite many attempts, the lock was not broken.
But he kept hitting. After many attempts the lock finally broke. The chain loosened. As a result, his imprisonment ended. Without wasting a moment, Mangibai Tanwar quickly left the house and started walking towards Khilchipur.
By then the night had fallen. Mongibai walked through deserted areas, fields and rough roads. But the broken chains and locks are still hanging around the neck. Thorns were piercing his legs. His leg was bruised and bloody on the journey. Still he went ahead.
Seeing the chain around his neck, people on the street thought Mongibai Tanwa was mentally unstable. Few people stop to ask questions. And even fewer understood what the chain actually symbolized. However, a passerby notices her plight and offers her something to eat. However, he did not stop walking towards the police station.
When Mangibai entered the Khilchipur police station at around 10 pm, even the seasoned policemen were taken aback. The iron chain was still hanging around his neck. The woman had obvious burn marks on her body. He seemed to have a mental breakdown.
Within moments of reaching the police station, he broke down in tears and narrated the entire incident. The police opened the chain and sent it for medical examination.
According to the police, an examination revealed bruises and burn marks on Mangibai’s body. They immediately sent a team to the village and arrested the accused husband.
Khilchipur police station officer-in-charge Kamal Singh Gehlot said the woman approached the police and complained that her husband had beaten her up and detained her illegally. “A case has been registered under the relevant sections based on the woman’s complaint. The accused has been arrested and produced before the court.
According to police, the dispute started after an argument at home and later turned violent. Investigators are looking into all aspects of the incident.
The chain that was once used to try to silence her voice eventually landed her in the police station and became the strongest piece of evidence against the man accused of abusing her.
