Dowry harassment: ‘Khuda Hafiz’, says newly-wed woman in suicide note video

April 12, 2017

Hyderabad, Apr 12: In a halting voice, choked by tears, the young woman said, "This is my suicide note... Mother please forgive me. Khuda Hafiz". Head bent, she was looking into the camera, describing how her husband and in-laws were harassing her for dowry.

Anjum Faizan, 20, who was married three months ago, ended her life at her parents' home in Hyderabad yesterday afternoon, after what she said was intense harassment.

Ms Faizan was married to Mohammad Arif, nicknamed Irfan, a resident of Yakuthpura in the Old City of Hyderabad in January. Soon after the wedding, he, along with his mother and other relatives, started pressurising her for dowry, the young woman said in the video.

Two days ago, Ms Faizan's father had brought her home, the police said. But on Tuesday afternoon, when only her mother was at home, she locked herself into the bathroom and hanged herself. She was declared dead at a local hospital.

The young woman's video message, which she recorded on her mother's phone, will be treated as a dying declaration, the police said.

Investigating officer Ravinder Reddy said at the time of Ms Faizan's wedding, her father Mohammad Abdul Gaffar, a plumber, had given Rs. 50,000 in cash, 116 gm of gold and household items as part of her dowry. The young woman had finished school and Mohammad Arif, who works as a salesperson, was considered a good match by the family.

Now, Mohammad Arif, his mother and sister who have been accused in the case of dowry harassment and abetment to suicide, are absconding, the police said.

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Elusive bamboo shrimp resurfaces in Mangaluru estuary after 70 years

News Network

December 7,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 7: A rare bamboo shrimp has been rediscovered on mainland India more than 70 years after it was last reported, confirming for the first time the presence of Atyopsis spinipes in the country. The find was made by researchers from the Centre for Climate Change Studies at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, during surveys in Karnataka and Odisha.

The team — shrimp expert Dr S Prakash, PhD scholar K Kunjulakshmi, and Mangaluru-based researcher Maclean Antony Santos — combined field surveys, ecological assessments and DNA analysis to identify the elusive species. Their findings, published in Zootaxa, resolve decades of taxonomic confusion stemming from a 1951 report that misidentified the species as Atyopsis moluccensis without strong evidence.

The shrimp has now been confirmed at two locations: the Mulki–Pavanje estuary near Mangaluru and the Kuakhai River in Bhubaneswar. Historical specimens from the Andaman Islands, previously labelled as A. moluccensis, were also found to be misidentified and actually belong to A. spinipes.

The rediscovery began after an aquarium hobbyist in Odisha spotted a shrimp in 2022, prompting systematic surveys across Udupi, Karwar and Mangaluru. Four female specimens were collected in Mulki and one in Odisha, all genetically matching.

Researchers warn the species may exist in very small, vulnerable populations as freshwater habitats face increasing pressure from pollution, sand mining and infrastructure development. All verified specimens have been deposited with the Zoological Survey of India for future reference.

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