The Cheyur police arrested Chitradevi, mother-in-law of 27-year-old A. Rithanya, on July 4, following pressure from the victim’s father, Annadurai, who personally appealed to Superintendent of Police Yadhav Girish Ashok. Rithanya had died by suicide in Tiruppur last week, allegedly due to severe dowry harassment by her husband and in-laws.
Though Rithanya’s husband, Kavinkumar, and father-in-law, Eashwaramoorthy, were arrested shortly after the FIR was filed, police initially cited health reasons to delay Chitradevi’s arrest. However, the victim’s family accused her of cruel treatment — starving Rithanya and confining her to a locked room. Rithanya died just 78 days after her wedding, leaving behind an emotional voice message detailing her suffering.
According to the family’s legal counsel, the accused had harassed Rithanya for 200 additional sovereigns of gold, even after receiving 300 sovereigns and a ₹65 lakh luxury car during the wedding. They also claimed that crucial details were only later added to the FIR.
After meeting AIADMK leader Edappadi K. Palaniswami, Rithanya’s parents called for a transparent and time-bound investigation. They also requested scrutiny of phone records between the couple to reveal further evidence.
Meanwhile, the bail plea of Kavinkumar and Eashwaramoorthy has been deferred to July 7. The victim’s legal team strongly objected to the early bail attempt, citing the gravity and recency of the incident.