NEW DELHI: Prathyusha Challa, an IIM Ahmedabad graduate, has shed light on her family’s harrowing experience of alleged extortion by her former sister-in-law in a video that has gone viral, garnering over 2.8 million views on X. The revelation comes amid widespread outrage following the suicide of Bengaluru techie Atul Subhash, which has reignited discussions around domestic violence against men.
In the video, Challa recounted how her brother, an assistant professor at a Hyderabad engineering college, married a woman from Rajahmundry in 2019. However, the marriage lasted just 10 days.
“She misbehaved with my parents, spoke foul language, and did not let my brother into his own bedroom. She often threatened suicide. This was clearly an extortion plan by my sister-in-law, her sister, her brother, and her boyfriend. Her sister had also executed a similar extortion plan with her in-laws. Ten days after she left our home, she filed a 498 case (Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) that deals with cruelty against a married woman by her husband or his relatives) against us. The FIR was filed without our knowledge or any investigation,” Challa alleged in the video.
Even after five years, Challa revealed, the trial has yet to commence, leaving her family in a state of prolonged distress. “It has been 5 years since this incident, and the trial for this case has not yet begun. This has been traumatising. My parents’ health has declined,” she shared.
Challa also spoke about how the case has impacted her career. Despite her stellar academic background—an alumna of IIM Ahmedabad and IIT Gandhinagar—and previous role as a Vice President at Goldman Sachs, she admitted to struggling professionally. “Despite my flawless academic records, I have been unable to find a job,” she said, pointing to the pending criminal case as a major obstacle.
The video sparked an outpouring of reactions on social media, with many netizens criticising flaws in the arranged marriage system and sharing similar experiences.
“Arranged marriage is injurious to mental health,” one user commented. Another wrote, “A friend of mine, day 1 of marriage, she didn’t let him even touch her, no talks, nothing, living in separate rooms. Weeks passed, he found she is always on the phone with someone. One fine day he got home from work only to see them having fun on his bed.”
