Karnataka man held for threatening wife with posting private pictures on social media after divorce refusal

Belagavi (Karnataka): A 45-year-old man was arrested here for allegedly threatening his wife with making her private pictures and videos viral on social media platforms after she refused to divorce him, police said on Thursday.

The accused Kiran Patil was allegedly having an affair with a woman he wanted to wed. His wife, a government school teacher, knew about this and refused his separation plea, they said.

The accused had also subjected his wife to physical abuse and harassment following which she had also got a case registered against him for domestic violence. But the man still continued to harass her, a senior police officer said.

In her complaint, the woman alleged her husband was blackmailing her with her private pictures and videos and threatened to make them viral on social media platforms if she did not divorce him. Despite trying to convince him to not do so, he kept harassing her, the officer said.

"Based on her complaint, we registered an FIR under relevant sections of Information Technology Act and IPC and called the accused for an inquiry on December 27," he said.

"During the inquiry, when we checked his mobile phone, we found private images and videos of his wife. When he sensed that he could be arrested, he escaped from the police station and attempted suicide by drinking some poisonous substance," the officer said.

After taking a few drops of the substance, he returned to the police station and claimed he had consumed poison following which he was admitted to the nearest hospital for treatment, he said.

"He was discharged on Wednesday following which he was sent to judicial custody," the officer added.