'Need to listen to samaj': Noida dowry victim's father says marriages happen through mediators

The father of dowry victim Nikki Bhati, a 28-year-old woman who was allegedly burned to death in Greater Noida, made a shocking statement about the prevalence of dowry in his clan.

Bhikari Singh Payla claimed that marriages in his family still happen with dowry and mediators engage in it. Speaking to NDTV, days after his daughter's tragic death, he said, "In our clan, marriages happen through (dowry) mediators. We need to listen to our samaj and clan members."

As the dowry death case surfaced, political leaders, social activists and others condemned the alleged crime and demanded justice for Nikki. But many echoed one question -- dowry despite ban?

Nikki's father claimed that he married off two of his daughters, Nikki and Kanchan, into the Bhati family satisfying a list of dowry demands.

He said that during the wedding, the family offered an expensive car and gold. He claimed that the in-laws kept asking for more items, including a Mercedes and about Rs 36 lakh. Condemning the alleged unsettling dowry demands, he said with tears, "I have lost everything. I lost my daughter, what is left now."

When the news channel asked why he obliged to dowry, he pointed fingers at the society and his clan, where he alleged the banned practice still prevails.

What happened with Nikki Bhati?

Nikki was a young woman married to a man named Vipin Bhati in 2016 after allegedly settling a huge sum in dowry. However, Nikki allegedly suffered constant harassment from her husband and in-laws, who according to the victim's family kept demanding for money and expensive dowry items. In a disturbing incident, she was allegedly beaten up and burnt alive recently.

Dowry deaths in India

Dowry is illegal in India for decades now, but data highlights the contradictory reality.

The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) revealed that as many as 7,634 women lost their lives to dowry harassment in 2015. However, the numbers have reduced slightly in the past few years.

Official data shows a marginal decline in dowry death cases — with an average of 7,000 cases reported each year between 2017 and 2022, compared to around 8,000 annually between 2012 and 2016.