She was 18 when she was married off. Over the next three years, she suffered a cycle of physical assault, dowry harassment and abuse by her husband and in-laws, running back home to her parents and then being sent back after the husband apologised in front of the panchayat.
In 2019, just days after she gave birth to a baby boy, she found chats between her husband and a woman and confronted him – a decision which had catastrophic consequences. This time, her husband held her down in bed and force-fed toilet cleaner acid to her.
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It is now 2025, and 27-year-old Rashmi is still fighting for justice and is unable to eat or drink anything. Her food pipe (oesophagus) and intestines are burned, and she has undergone multiple surgeries over the years. On 'bad' days, she finds it painful to even swallow her own saliva.
For 28-year-old Ruman, it was her husband, mother-in-law and sister-in-law who lashed her with a leather
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