Gujarat teen allegedly killed by family, clears NEET

Palanpur: An 18-year-old girl from Gujarat, who was allegedly killed in a suspected honour killing, has cleared the highly competitive National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), a police official confirmed on Wednesday.

The teenager from Banaskantha district was allegedly murdered by her father and two uncles on 24 June at her native village, said Danta division Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Suman Nala.

To prepare for the all-India medical entrance exam, she had moved to Palanpur town. During that period, she entered into a live-in relationship with a man.

“She had given NEET a few months back, but it is still unclear if she wanted to become a doctor or a nurse. As per the results announced recently, she has cleared the test with good marks,” said Nala.

Who are the accused?

Based on a complaint by her live-in partner, Haresh Chaudhary, the Tharad police in the district on 6 August booked the girl’s father, Sendhabhai Patel, and uncle, Shivrambhai Patel, for murder, as they were allegedly against the relationship, Nala said.

Following the FIR, police arrested Shivrambhai and later added the name of Naran Patel, a cousin of both Sendhabhai and Shivrambhai, as a co-accused. “We arrested Naran Patel on Tuesday. He is a cousin of Shivrambhai and Sendhabhai, who is still absconding,” Nala stated.

What led to the police investigation?

Two weeks ago, police began investigating the teenager’s death after Chaudhary, a resident of Vadgamda village, filed an application alleging she may have been killed by her family because they opposed the relationship and wanted to arrange her marriage to someone else, Nala said.

According to the FIR, Chaudhary, who is already married and has a son, fell in love with the girl after offering her a lift from Tharad town to Palanpur. Nala noted that it remains unclear whether Chaudhary had disclosed his marital status to the girl.

In May, the couple eloped to Ahmedabad, where they signed a formal agreement for a live-in relationship. They later travelled to Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

However, on 12 June, a police team from Tharad, accompanied by a relative of the girl, located them at a hotel in Rajasthan. The girl was handed over to her uncle, Shivrambhai, while Chaudhary was arrested in connection with an old case registered in Kutch district under the Prohibition Act.

After being released from jail on 21 June, Chaudhary discovered that the girl had sent him two Instagram messages on 17 June, expressing fears that her family might kill her or force her into marriage.

Chaudhary told police he had not seen the messages earlier because he was in jail. He subsequently contacted a lawyer, who filed a habeas corpus petition in the Gujarat High Court, seeking that the girl be produced in court.

However, on 25 June, two days before the scheduled hearing, Chaudhary learned that she had died on the night of 24 June and that her last rites were performed the next morning.

How did the alleged murder take place?

According to the FIR, the girl’s father and uncle had decided to kill her, fearing she might again elope with Chaudhary.

“When the girl was at Shivrambhai's house at Dantiya village in Tharad on the night of 24 June, she was offered milk containing sleeping pills. When she fell unconscious, the duo strangled her and performed her last rites the next morning to hide their crime,” said Nala.