Student ends life over alleged forced conversion pressure in UP's Etawah; two arrested

Etawah, May 3 (IANS) A 19-year-old BSc student died after allegedly consuming poison in Etawah’s Kadampur village, Uttar Pradesh, reportedly due to sustained harassment and pressure to convert her religion, officials said.

The girl’s family has accused a local youth, Rizwan, of coercing her into marrying him and converting her faith.

The student was admitted to Saifai Medical University in critical condition, where she died during treatment.

According to the family, Rizwan had been harassing the girl for several months, sending obscene messages and repeatedly pressuring her to meet him.

On April 24, he allegedly threatened to kill her entire family. A formal complaint was filed at the Usrahar police station on April 26 against Rizwan and two of his friends.

However, the family claims no effective action was taken by the police.

Despite the complaint, the accused allegedly continued to harass and threaten the student. Distressed by the continued pressure and lack of police action, she consumed poison on the night of April 30.

Her brother said the threats and harassment had taken a toll on her mental state. The student's father, a labourer working in Delhi, was away at the time, while the girl lived with her mother.

Following her death, the police registered a case late on Friday night under Sections 115(2), 352, and 351(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), along with Section 66D of the IT Act, for abetment of suicide. Rizwan and his brother Salman have been arrested.

The family also alleged negligence at the post-mortem facility. When the body was brought in late on Friday night, it was initially placed in a faulty deep freezer. The family protested, after which it was moved to a functioning one nearly half an hour later.

They also alleged a delay of over 10 hours in conducting the post-mortem.

Senior Superintendent of Police Sanjay Kumar Verma confirmed the arrest of the main accused and said an additional police force has been deployed in the village to maintain law and order.

--IANS

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