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A 20-year-old woman was shot dead allegedly by her father and cousin with police present nearby in Madhya Pradesh’s Gwalior district after she voiced opposition to her arranged marriage and insisted on marrying a person of her choice.
The victim’s father was arrested by the police after the incident while searches are on to locate the cousin.
The incident took place on Tuesday, January 14, in Gwalior’s Gole Ka Mandir area, during a panchayat (community meeting) that had been called over the issue. While the meeting was underway, a police team reached the location in order to probe a video that had been released by the woman.
In the video, the woman, Tanu Gurjar, had alleged that her father, Mahendra Gurjar, and other relatives had kept her captive at home and beaten her up for opposing her arranged marriage.
“I have been in a relationship with a man for six years. Initially, my family approved of our marriage, but later they denied it. They thrash me and also threaten to kill me… If anything happens to me, or if I die, my family will be responsible for it,” the victim said in the video message.
According to the police, the family of the woman had fixed her marriage for February 18 and had sent invitation cards to guests. However, Tanu was against the arranged marriage and at the January 14 meeting, she again voiced her opposition to the marriage.
At the meeting, Mahesh Gurjar requested the police to allow him to speak with Tanu in private. He then took her to a room inside his home and shot her dead using a country-made pistol. The victim’s cousin, Rahul Gurjar, also fired at her and fled from the spot.
Police arrested Mahesh Gurjar from the murder site while a team has been constituted to trace Rahul’s location.
Speaking about the incident, Gwalior Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Nagendra Singh Sikarwar, said, “A father shot his daughter dead in the Adarsh Nagar colony in Gwalior’s Gole Ka Mandir area. The woman’s marriage was scheduled on February 18 and there was a dispute between the due regarding the marriage.”
“The woman wanted to marry a person of her choice, while the father had fixed her marriage to another person. As per information, 4 rounds of bullets hit the victim, after which she died on the spot. The forensic team has collected evidence from the incident and the prime accused has been arrested under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).” Sikarwar added.
