Former Apple employee describes domestic violence in court

Despite evidence and previous offenses, Abhishek Gattani is unlikely to face serious charges

Former Apple engineer Neha Rastogi who helped developing the iphone was married to Abhishek Gattani, CEO of the Silicon Valley start-up Cuberon through a traditional arranged-marriage in 2009.

According to a Daily Beast report, Rastogi was abused by her husband for a decade. Gattani was arrested twice for assaulting his wife.

Realising that under a pending plea offered to him by prosecutors, he would only spend 30 days behind bars, Neha spoke heart in her victim impact statement.

According to her statement, Rastogi describes how her husband used to abuse her, and her ongoing disappointment with the criminal justice system.

"He hit me, multiple times during each incident on my face, arms, head, belly, pulled my hair and abused me and called me a b****h, w***e, s**t, b*****d and much more in my language," she wrote. She also accused Gattani of beating her while she was pregnant and forcing her to stand for long periods of time as a form of punishment.

She said that her husband encouraged her to even commit suicide and threatened to kill her. He blamed her for feeling scared and unsafe with him and often called her mental state a 'self-inflicted depression'.

Later, Rastogi said she was speaking out just because she believes her husband will abuse other people unless he receives appropriate punishment. Gattani is expected back in court on May 18 for sentencing.

Indian-born Gattani went to California in 2005 as a software engineer. He became director of engineering at Kosmix, a company later bought by Walmart.

OneIndia News