Ludhiana: A 32-year-old mother of two has died by suicide in the Tibba area after allegedly being blackmailed and exploited by her landlord, who she claimed secretly filmed her while she was bathing.The victim was found hanging in her rented room at one of the Tibba’s localities on Feb 9. Before taking her own life, she recorded a series of videos detailing her ordeal and sent them to her husband, who lives and works in the United Kingdom. Police have launched a manhunt for the landlord and his mother following the discovery of the video evidence.A race against timeThe tragedy was compounded by the time difference between India and the UK. The investigating officer, assistant sub-inspector (ASI) Baljeet Singh, has claimed that the woman’s husband did not see the distressing messages immediately. “As soon as he saw the videos, he called his sister who lives in the same locality and asked her to check on his wife,” the ASI said. “When she arrived, the house was bolted from the inside. Police were called to break open the gate, but the woman was already dead.”The couple’s children — a 10-year-old son and a 7-year-old daughter — were at school when the incident occurred.Allegations of exploitationIn the recorded videos, the woman alleged that the landlord had captured voyeuristic footage of her and subsequently used the videos to blackmail and “exploit” her. The police have also booked the landlord’s mother, after the victim revealed she had previously tried to report landlord’s behavior to her. Instead of intervening, the landlord’s mother allegedly supported her son and ignored the victim’s pleas for help.Legal ActionThe Tibba police have registered an FIR (first-information report) against the mother and son under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) section 108 (abetment to suicide) and 3 (5) (criminal acts performed by several persons in furtherance of common intention). The accused remain on the run. Police confirmed that the digital evidence provided by the husband will form the backbone of the prosecution’s case.
