The tragic story of Vismaya Nair was brought to a conclusion by a court in Southern India, which yesterday sentenced her husband, Kiran Kumar, to ten years in prison for hounding her to her death by suicide.
Kumar was convicted on the basis of the “dowry death” law, which enables the police to bring charges against people who are implicated in the deaths of women during the first seven years of marriage, for reasons related to their dowries.
Prior to the marriage of Kumar to Vismaya Nair, their families had agreed on a dowry that consisted of 100 gold sovereigns, an acre of land, and a car. However after the marriage ceremony took place, the groom immediately started asking for more. He complained that he wanted a more expensive car and requested more money.
In an attempt to pressure the Nair family into increasing the marriage payments, Kumar started to abuse his wife physically, verbally and psychologically. He isolated her from her family and friends, and even forced her to quit her job. One year after the marriage, the new bride died by suicide.
In 2020 the deaths of over 7000 women were linked to their dowries in India.
Claudine Cassar began her professional journey in business, earning a BSc in Business and Computing from the University of Malta, followed by an MSc in International Marketing from the University of Strathclyde and an MPhil in Innovation from Maastricht Business School. At the age of 23, she founded her first company, which she successfully sold to Deloitte 17 years later.
At 45, Claudine made a bold career shift, returning to university to pursue a degree in Anthropology. Three years later, she graduated with a BA (Hons) in Anthropological Sciences. In 2022, she published her debut book, “The Battle for Sicily’s Soul.“