Popular Kannada singer Sushmitha commits suicide at age 23 over alleged dowry harassment

Popular Kannada singer Sushmitha has committed suicide over alleged dowry harassment. The playback singer who married Sharath Kumar about one-and-a-half years ago hung herself from the ceiling of her parents' home in Bengaluru. 

Reportedly, the singer sent a WhatsApp message to her brother and mother before hanging herself early in the morning. In a suicide note, the singer accused her husband and relatives of demanding dowry and harassing her. According to Bengaluru Police, Sushmitha's brother alerted the police after he found her body hanging from the ceiling.

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According to the police, Sushmitha came to her mother’s house in Nagarbhavi on Sunday wherein she had dinner and chatted with her mother Meenakshi and younger brother Sachin before going to sleep.

“Around 1am, she sent a WhatsApp message to Sachin and her mother, explaining that she was having a tough time with her husband Sharath Kumar and his relatives and this was prompting her to commit suicide. While Meenakshi’s phone was switched off, Sachin saw the message around 5.30 am and rushed to her room only to find her hanging from the fan by a dupatta,” Annapoorneshwari Nagar police said. 

In the text message, Sushmitha wrote that her husband, Sharath, his sister, Geetha, and his aunt, Vydehi, harassed her and they were the reason behind her ending her life. She also stated that she did not want to end her life in their house and hence came to her parents’ house.

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The Annapoorneshwari Nagar police has registered a case of dowry death, charging her husband and his sister and aunt based on a complaint filed by Sushmitha’s mother Meenakshi. The three accused are on the run after hearing about her death and the police said that efforts are on to trace them.

Sushmitha sang in an orchestra before she entered the television and Kannada film industry. Sushmitha's body of work includes singing playback in films like Haalu - Tuppa, Srisamanya, Hani Hani Hibbani among others.

(This is a developing story)