Vaishali: The death of a 30-year-old government school teacher in Bihar has triggered serious allegations of dowry-related murder, with her family disputing a suicide note recovered from the scene and accusing her husband and in-laws of killing her and attempting to destroy evidence.
Priya Bharti, a teacher recruited through the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC), was found hanging in a rented room in the Katahra police station area of Vaishali district on the morning of January 26. Police said a note recovered from her room described the death as a suicide, but her family has rejected its authenticity and filed a first information report (FIR) alleging murder for dowry.
“My daughter was strong. She could never take her own life,” said her mother, Indrakala Bharti. “She was murdered, and her body was hung to erase evidence.”
According to police, the handwritten note addressed to Bharti’s parents stated: “Mom and Dad, I’m sorry. I have no dispute with anyone. This is not a murder.” However, family members claim the handwriting and signature do not match Priya’s and have demanded a forensic examination.
Bharti, who had passed the BPSC examination in 2021, was posted at Khajechand Chhapra High School in Chehra Kala block. She lived alone in rented accommodation about 2km from the school. She had married Deepak Kumar Giri, a deputy branch manager with ICICI Bank, in November 2024 and was the mother of a three-month-old daughter.
In her complaint to police, Indrakala Bharti alleged that her daughter had been facing sustained harassment from her husband’s family over dowry demands. She named Priya’s husband, mother-in-law, sister-in-law and nephew as accused in the case.
The mother said that tensions escalated earlier this month when Priya’s sister-in-law stayed with her for several days before returning to her parental home along with Priya’s mother-in-law. On January 9, Priya travelled to her parents’ home in Katihar with her infant daughter, but was later persuaded by her husband to visit her in-laws’ house for a festival.
“She was sent back alone to her rented room, while her mother-in-law and sister-in-law kept the baby,” her mother alleged. “She called me crying, saying her child had been taken away.”
According to the family, Priya last spoke to her mother on January 25, alleging that she had been beaten and threatened with death unless she brought Rs 500,000 and money for a car from her parents’ home. “She was terrified,” Indrakala Bharti said. “We told her we would come and bring her home the next day. Before we could reach her, she was dead.”
The family claims they were informed of Priya’s death at around 7.30am on January 26 and asked that no procedures be conducted until they arrived. By the time they reached Vaishali, they said the body had already been taken to Sadar Hospital, where they noticed injuries on her head.
Further controversy followed the handling of Priya’s remains. Her cousin Ajit alleged that members of her husband’s family forcibly seized the body from her relatives and cremated it at Konhara Ghat without the consent of her parents.
“They blocked us, took the body by force and immersed it in the Ganges,” he said. “There were police personnel and local political figures present.”
Neighbours described Priya as quiet and respectful. “She followed a routine—school in the morning, home by afternoon,” said Sunaina Devi, who lived nearby. “She was kind-hearted, and we often played with her baby.”
A local milk vendor, Beena Devi, said Priya had stopped receiving milk deliveries after January 14. An autorickshaw driver who regularly took her to school said he arrived at her home at 8am on the day of her death but received no response after knocking for several minutes.
Police said an investigation is under way and that all allegations, including the authenticity of the suicide note and claims of dowry harassment, are being examined. No arrests have been confirmed so far.
