'My family betrayed us': Woman who 'married' lover's body
What's the story
In Maharashtra's Nanded, the parents and brother of the woman who "married" her boyfriend's corpse after he was beaten to death are among six people who have been arrested in the murder case. The victim was 20-year-old Saksham Tate. Aanchal Mamidwar, 21, claims her brothers were provoked by two policemen, whom she identified as Dheeraj Komalwar and Maheet Asarwar, to attack Tate.
Police involvement
Aanchal Mamidwar accuses police of inciting violence
According to NDTV, Mamidwar said, "The cops told my brother, 'You keep coming here after killing people. Why don't you kill the man your sister is involved with?'" She said she met Tate on Instagram and not through her brothers. "We were together for three years... My brothers had assured me that they would organize our wedding. But they betrayed us at the last moment," she said.
Family opposition
Aanchal's family opposes relationship, accuses Saksham of caste
Mamidwar's family opposed the relationship on caste grounds as she belongs to the Special Backward Class while Tate was a Dalit. "One day, my father told Saksham that if he wanted to marry me, he would have to come into our religion, Hindu Dharma," she claimed. Despite this, Mamidwar claims her family hung out with Tate and convinced him everything was fine until the incident occurred.
Arrest and charges
Aanchal's family members arrested, charged with murder
Mamidwar's 17-year-old younger brother allegedly shot Saksham in the ribs and then smashed a tile on his head, killing him. Her father, Gajanan Balaji Mamidwar, her mother, Jayshree Mamidwar, her elder brother, Sahil Gajanan Mamidwar, and three others, including the 17-year-old brother, have been arrested. They face charges of murder, unlawful assembly, rioting under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and Arms Act.
Aftermath
Mamidwar 'marries' Saksham's corpse, vows to live with his family
After Tate's death, Mamidwar "married" his corpse during the last rites. She said she would now live with Saksham's family and demanded justice for her boyfriend's murder. "I was in love with Tate for the past three years...My father opposed our relationship over caste differences," she said. A police official was quoted as saying, "Both Tate and Aanchal's brothers had criminal records...The Mamidwar family opposed their relationship...finally culminated in Tate's killing."