Pre-marital ties triggered row: How honeymoon in Sri Lanka led to suicide of Bengaluru couple 1,000km apart

NAGPUR: Stung by his wife's suicide two days ago, following disputes over pre-marital friendship during their Sri Lanka honeymoon, hounded by public sentiment and charged with dowry harassment and abetment to suicide, 30-year-old Bengaluru resident Suraj Shivanna died by suicide in a Nagpur hotel post-midnight after undertaking a 1,000 km circuitous road journey to this Maharashtra city, following a brief stopover at Hyderabad.

A franchise owner of an online delivery service in Vijayanagar, Bengaluru, Suraj was found hanging in the hotel room by his 60-year-old mother, Jayanti, around 12:30am on Saturday, triggering her death wish, but she survived after the noose snapped.




The tragedy unfolded at a city hotel in Sonegaon police limits, where Suraj checked in with his family at 9:30pm on Friday after fleeing Bengaluru.

After her failed suicide attempt, Jayanti raised an alarm that alerted hotel staff and her elder son, Sanjay Shivanna, 36, who lodged a police report. Suraj was taken to AIIMS, Nagpur, where doctors confirmed his death around 3am.

As per the FIR, Suraj hanged himself from the ceiling fan with a dupatta (scarf). His brother, Sanjay, a businessman from Vidyaranyapura, Bengaluru, told police the family was forced to flee Bengaluru due to escalating threats from Suraj's in-laws following the suicide of his wife, Ganavi.

"Around 30 people stormed our house at Vijayanagar, searching for Suraj, who was named in an FIR for dowry harassment. We were traumatised and in fear. We had no option but to escape Bengaluru," said Sanjay. On Dec 25, they drove to Hyderabad, and the next day arrived in Nagpur late at night.

They booked two rooms at the hotel.Suraj married Ganavi, an MBA graduate, in an arranged ceremony in Bengaluru on Oct 29. Family sources revealed the wedding was lavish, but Ganavi was reportedly reluctant, pressured into the union by her aunt. The couple embarked on a 10-day honeymoon to Sri Lanka, but the trip turned sour within days.

During the getaway, revelations about Ganavi's pre-marital friendship surfaced, leading to heated arguments, said family sources, adding Ganavi expressed disinterest in the marriage, further widening the rift. The couple returned to Bengaluru after five days, landing on a Monday.

On their return, attempts by family members, including Sanjay, to mediate failed. "I tried to broker peace, assuring the couple the matter would be sorted soon, but they didn't listen," Sanjay recounted in conversations with sources. Ganavi left for her father's home that night and hours later hanged herself to death. Her death sparked a backlash from her family, who accused Suraj and his relatives of torturing her for dowry.

Bengaluru police swiftly acted against the Shivanna family based on allegations, filing a case that intensified pressure on them. Talking to TOI, Sanjay emphatically denied the dowry allegations.

"We did not make any demands. We covered all wedding expenses. It's shocking on their part to hurl such allegations. Instead, Ganavi's family had begun issuing death threats to us. My brother was scared and apologetic," Sanjay said, referring to the in-laws' visit to their Bengaluru home on Dec 22. Suraj's autopsy report is awaited to rule out foul play. Police in Nagpur and Bengaluru are coordinating in the investigations.