She cleared NEET… then her family ended her life

An 18-year-old NEET qualifier from Gujarat’s Banaskantha was allegedly murdered by her father and uncle in what police suspect to be an “honour killing,” The Times of India reported.

According to the FIR filed on a complaint by her partner, the teenager, identified as Chandrika Chaudhary, was killed as her family feared she “might fall in love and marry by choice” if she went to a medical college. “Shivram (her uncle) had visited some colleges and saw boys and girls studying together. He told her father she should not be sent there as she might fall in love with a boy and marry him. They took away her phone, cut her off from social media, and made her do only household chores,” claimed 23-year-old Haresh Chaudhary, Chandrika’s partner, to police.

Police said Chandrika was allegedly given milk laced with sedatives by her father, Sendha, after which he and her uncle, Shivram, strangled her with a dupatta on June 25. The accused then tried to pass off the murder as a suicide, with Shivram reportedly telling some villagers that she had suffered a heart attack. She was also hurriedly cremated, according to police.


Chandrika had scored 478 marks in the NEET exam, making her eligible for admission to a government medical college. While she wanted to continue her studies and live independently, her farmer family opposed her plans.

The alleged murder took place days before the Gujarat high court was scheduled to hear a habeas corpus petition filed by Haresh, which later exposed the “premeditated” killing, ToI reported. Shivram is currently in police custody, while Sendha is absconding.

With inputs from ToI