Woman commits suicide by jumping into river, husband booked for harassment

A 23-year-old woman killed herself by jumping into the Sabarmati river from the riverfront walkway in Gujarat’s Ahmedabad on Thursday morning. Before taking the extreme step, the now-deceased woman, identified as Aisha Arif Khan, recorded a heartrending video clip on her mobile phone, with a smile on her face. Aisha starts the video by introducing herself with a big smile on her face, but the pain of betrayal is clearly visible in her eyes. She, initially, says that nobody should be held responsible for her extreme step. But as the video advances, her voice turns nervous and the reason for the emotional turmoil within her becomes clear. “Hello Assalamo Alayekkum, my name is Aisha (a brief pause) Arif Khan. Whatever I am going to do is my decision and nobody has pressured me for this. I have nothing to say now. Understand that the almighty gave me a short life,” she says in her final video. She further states: “Arif (her husband) wants freedom. I will give him freedom. I am happy that I am going to meet Allah. I’ll ask him what was my mistake.”She adds,

 “Ek cheez jarur sikh gayi hoon; mohabbat karni hai to do tarfa karo, ek tarfe se kuch haasil nahi hota (I have learnt one thing; if you want to love, let it be two-sided. Nothing can be gained from one-sided love).“Main hawaaon ki tarah hoon; main behna chaahti hoon… Main khush hoon aaj… Mujhe duaon me yaad karna, kya pata jannat mile na mile (I am like the winds; I want to flow… I am happy today… Remember me in your prayers. Don’t know if I will go to heaven or not)”: these were her last words. According to a report by Ahmedabad Mirror, Aisha got married to Arif Khan in July 2018. Shortly after the wedding, Arif and his family members allegedly began harassing Aisha for dowry. She went to her parents’ housein Vatva locality of Ahmedabad in December 2018. Later, their community members intervened, following which she returned to her matrimonial house. Her father gave around Rs 1.5 lakh to her husband, but nothing changed. Hence, she came back to her parents’ home. Unable to bear the separation from her husband, she decided to kill herself. However, before taking the extreme step, she filmed a video, expressing her feelings, and sent it to her husband. He, instead of trying to calm her down, told her to do whatever she wanted. After this, she jumped into the Sabarmati river.