Former Indian women’s hockey team captain Suraj Lata Devi has accused her husband of physical assault and mental torture over dowry issues.
“My husband Shanta Singh ridiculed me when I brought all the medals and photos that I had won on the day of my marriage and had remarked ‘what use would it serve’,” Devi told reporters in Guwahati on Thursday.
Devi said she was subjected to harassment by her husband from the time they got married in 2005 with dowry being the primary reason.
“I never wanted the matter to become public. However, there is a limit to someone’s patience and tolerance,” said the former hockey team captain.
Suraj Lata said that she always thought her husband’s behavior would change, but after he assaulted her at Kapurthala in Punjab in November last year while she was officiating at a tournament, she told to herself that it was enough.
Suraj Lata’s husband has been booked under various sections of the IPC, including Section 498-A (husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty).
Suraj Lata had filed the complaint with the Manipur Police in January, which was then forwarded to Sultanpur Lodhi police station in Punjab as the incident of violence had occurred there.
Under Suraj Lata, Indian women’s hockey team had won three international tournaments — 2002 Commonwealth Games, 2003 Afro-Asian Games and Asia Cup in 2004.
