Chennai: He accused her of having an affair with her female friend. The court later found that this was part of a calculated cycle of abuse meant to humiliate, control, and drive her into silence.But she fought back.A city court has now ordered the man to pay 5 lakh as compensation and restrained him and his parents from coming anywhere near the woman—his wife of just 43 days.The wife said no to forced sex, questioned dowry demands, and refused to return to a house where she was watched through windows, denied food, and mocked for not conceiving. She also told the court he coerced her into sex while drunk and turned aggressive when she resisted. He once forced her to watch porn, mocked her physical appearance, and cast repeated aspersions on her character.Before the marriage in February 2021, he claimed to be working in the film industry. But she later discovered that was a lie—he was merely arranging loans for commission. When she confronted him, he abused her and her family using vulgar language and blamed her for bringing “insufficient dowry”—despite receiving 30 sovereigns of gold and a Royal Enfield Bullet. He was also under the influence of alcohol even during the wedding ceremony, including the moment he tied the ‘thali’.She was left at her mother’s home after the wedding and brought to her matrimonial home only in May 2021. Within a week, she was verbally abused by all three respondents—her husband and his parents. Soon, he turned stalker—watching her through windows, vandalising her vehicle wherever it was parked, and shouting obscenities outside her home. His parents allegedly joined him in threatening her with a knife and hurling stones at her house. She filed three police complaints in total, citing continued harassment even after initiating divorce proceedings.Even in court, the abuse didn’t stop.The magistrate noted that the husband’s counsel attempted to “tease the petitioner and her mother’s character during cross-examination”—which the court immediately curtailed. Despite 12 adjournments, he failed to produce any evidence. The court, noting the sustained verbal, physical, and emotional abuse, upheld her right to protection and redress.