Dead in UAE on birthday: Indian expat Athulya received chilling death threats in Sharjah

Sharjah: Fresh video evidence has revealed chilling death threats in the case of Indian expat in the UAE Athulya Sekhar who was found dead in her Sharjah apartment on her 30th birthday and the first day of a new job in July.

More footage showing Athulya being assaulted by her husband, Satheesh Sivasankara Pillai, has been submitted to a court in the south Indian state of Kerala, where a trial is ongoing.

Athulya’s family informed the court that the videos include threats by Satheesh to kill her and that they were recorded just days before her death, Malayalam media reported on Sunday. In the videos, Athulya stated that she had endured ten years of abuse, the reports said.

Abuse footage

The videos released by Reporter TV channel show Satheesh repeatedly using abusive, terrifying language. While trying to record harassment, Athulya was subjected to physical assault. The footage shows her being made to run around the table, being beaten, and crying from the assault.

In one video, Satheesh says: "Where can you go? I won’t let you go anywhere… You cannot live without me. I will stab you to death and will go to jail... I will not let you live... I will give quotation to kill you, and I do not need even one month of my salary for that."

Bail controversy

The family stated that Satheesh had also used a belt to assault Athulya and has requested that Satheesh’s bail be revoked while the defence claims the footage is old, Malayalam Manorama reported. The court has directed that a forensic examination of the videos be conducted, it added.

Legal proceedings

When Satheesh landed in Thiruvananthapuram from the UAE on August 10, he was taken into custody at the airport but was later released after securing anticipatory bail, citing that Athulya had committed suicide as per the forensic report from Sharjah.

However, her family claims that domestic and psychological abuse led to Athulya’s death. The case is currently being investigated by the Crime Branch of Kerala Police.

After Satheesh was released on bail, her family expressed hope that evidence from Athulya’s phone will be crucial in the case. Athulya’s Sharjah-based brother-in-law, who did not wish to be named, told Gulf News that the family remained hopeful that justice would be done.

"We (he and his wife, Athulya’s sister) had handed over her phone to the police. Apparently, Satheesh had tried to unlock the phone, but failed. The access to the phone had been blocked due to repeated attempts to unlock it using wrong passwords," he said.

Company action

Athulya’s family had released some other videos of Satheesh torturing her mentally and physically soon after her death. Based on those and reports about the case registered against him, Satheesh’s company in Dubai had terminated him from his job as a site engineer.

The fresh video evidence appears more incriminating despite the date of recording. Athulya was found dead in the couple’s apartment in the Rolla area of Sharjah on July 19, her 30th birthday and the day she was supposed to join a new job at a store in a nearby mall. The couple’s only child, a 10-year-old daughter, lives with Athulya’s parents.