Indian woman commits suicide after husband stops her tobacco intake

An Indian wife from Ludhiana took her own life after her husband stopped her from taking ‘gutkha’

The woman was identified as Poonam, a 26-year-old from Ludhiana, Punjab.

‘Gutkha’ is a chewing tobacco preparation made of crushed areca nut, tobacco, catechu, paraffin wax, slaked lime and sweet or savoury flavourings.

Costing between two and 10 rupees per packet, it is widely consumed in South Asian countries like India and Pakistan.

However, it contains carcinogens and it is considered to be responsible for several negative health effects.

Therefore, in India, it is subjected to the same restrictions and warnings as cigarettes.

After her husband stopped her from consuming ‘gutkha’, Poonam hung herself during the night of Monday, September 9, 2019.
The incident came to light the next day when her husband Vinod woke up.

He alerted the police and after they arrived at the scene, the body was sent for a post-mortem before being handed back to her relatives.

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Due to her regular consumption of ‘gutkha’, Vinod used to tell Poonam:

“I should have known you would have never stopped eating ‘gutkha’.”

Since her death, Vinod has said that he is constantly regretting saying that to his wife.

Vinod, who is originally from Unnava district in Andhra Pradesh, told officers that he lived with Poonam in Ludhiana.

On Monday evening, Poonam had asked her husband for some pan masala and ‘gutkha’, but he refused.

Following this, an argument broke out between the couple which lasted a while.

Late at night when Vinod had already gone to bed, Poonam took a rope, tied one end to the ceiling fan and the other around her neck.

Vinod was unaware that the Indian wife had taken her own life until the next morning when he woke up.

He went into the living room and saw his wife hanging from the fan. Vinod quickly took her down but by then she was already dead.

Vinod informed the police and they arrived at the house and began an investigation.

They took his statement and the woman’s body was taken for a post-mortem. After the post-mortem confirmed the cause of her death was suicide, Poonam’s body was handed over to her family.

(www.newsnow.co.uk)