Assault on newly-wed woman in Kerala: Blue Corner notice against husband

Kozhikode (Kerala): A Blue Corner notice has been issued by Interpol against a man accused of brutally assaulting and attempting to kill his newly-wed wife in this district, police said on Friday amidst speculations that he may have fled to Germany where he works.

A senior police officer of Kozhikode city confirmed that the Blue Corner notice has been issued and that it has been in effect since Thursday.

"A request was sent to Interpol through the Ministry of External Affairs for issuing it," the officer said.

A Blue Corner notice is issued by the international police cooperation body, Interpol, to collect additional information from its member countries about a person's identity, location or activities in relation to a crime.

The Blue Corner notice comes in the wake of a lookout circular that was issued against the accused husband -- Rahul P Gopal -- by the police.

On Tuesday, allegations by the bride and her family against the accused man surfaced and were aired on TV channels.

They alleged that he brutally assaulted and attempted to kill his wife following an argument over dowry, barely a week after their wedding on May 5.

The in-laws of the bride have denied the allegation that they had demanded dowry.

Gopal's mother had claimed that her daughter-in-law was refusing to stay in the matrimonial home and that led to an argument and subsequent fight between the couple.

"We never demanded dowry as we do not require it," the woman had said.

Besides the police action, both the Kerala Women's Commission (KWC) and the State Human Rights Commission are also looking into the issue and have sought reports from the investigating agency.

The KWC had also slammed the police for allegedly not taking the woman's complaint seriously initially.

The woman had alleged that the police in Pantheerankavu, where her matrimonial home is located, did not register a case of attempted murder despite her complaint clearly stating that her husband tried to strangle her using a mobile phone charging cable.

She and her family had also alleged that the police tried to settle the matter.

Following the intense criticism of the police from all quarters, including the Congress-led UDF opposition, a new investigative team was constituted to probe the case.