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Dubai firm fires husband after abuse videos surface
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Dubai construction company terminates Indian engineer after wife’s alleged suicide and release of assault videos
A Dubai-based construction company has terminated the employment of Satheesh Sivasankara Pillai, an Indian site engineer, after his wife, Athulya Sekhar, was found dead in Sharjah on July 19.
Athulya, originally from Kerala, was discovered in her apartment under suspicious circumstances on the day of her 30th birthday and the first day of a new job, reported hindustantimes.com.
The company’s HR team issued an immediate termination letter after videos emerged online showing Satheesh allegedly physically and mentally abusing Athulya. The company cited “circumstantial evidence” and media reports of a case registered against him in Kerala as the basis for its action.
Athulya Sekhar’s suspicious death in Sharjah prompts Dubai firm to fire husband after videos of abuse and dowry harassment emerge
The termination letter stated, “Your services are hereby terminated with immediate effect for your apparent involvement in your wife’s death… based on circumstantial evidences and the clippings of your violent treatment to her as shown by the media and her relatives.”
Athulya’s family, who lives in Kerala and Sharjah, claimed she was subjected to years of domestic abuse and dowry harassment. A complaint filed by her mother alleged that Satheesh strangled her, kicked her, and hit her head with a plate between July 18 and 19. The couple married in 2014 and had a 10-year-old daughter.
Her father told reporters that he did not believe Athulya would die by suicide and called her death “mysterious.” The family has released videos showing Athulya with visible injuries and Satheesh threatening her.
Kerala Police have registered a case against Satheesh under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961.
Satheesh, speaking from the UAE, has denied all allegations and said he was seeking answers himself.
The incident has sent shockwaves across the Indian community in the UAE, raising renewed concerns over domestic violence and dowry abuse. Her family is now working with the Indian Consulate and the Sharjah Police to seek justice.
