‘Father, uncle gave 18-yr-old milk laced with sedatives, killed her'

Time of India

6 hours ago

Police investigation in the mysterious death of 18-year-old Chandrika Chaudhary, an MBBS aspirant from Banaskantha, has confirmed that it was neither suicide nor a heart attack but a premeditated 'honour killing'.
The probe revealed that she was allegedly killed by her father and uncle for daring to dream of building her future with a man they did not approve of. Chandrika had been declared dead by her family two days before the Gujarat high court was scheduled to hear a habeas corpus petition by her partner Haresh Chaudhary.
According to the FIR lodged by Tharad police of Banaskantha, Chandrika was given milk laced with sedation pills by her uncle, Shivram Chaudhary, on the evening of June 24, on the instruction of her father, Sendha Chaudhary.
She was told to drink it and rest.
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"Have milk and rest well. Sleep well," were the last words Chandrika heard from her father before she was offered the glass of milk, according to the FIR.
But that night, while she was drowsy having taken the pills, her uncle and father lifted her and took her to a storeroom. There, they strangled her with a dupatta, later staging the scene to make it look like suicide. "She drank the milk and lay down.
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That was the last time she was seen alive," the FIR reads. Shivram, her uncle, is stated to have confessed that they wanted to make it appear as if Chandrika had taken her own life.
Her father is absconding.
The motive, as detailed in police statements, was rooted in "family honour". Chandrika, who aspired to become a doctor, was in a relationship with Haresh whom she first met at a bus stand in Feb this year. While she wished to continue her studies and live independently, away from family, they disapproved of it.Banaskantha police officials said the family initially declared the cause of death as a heart attack and quickly cremated the body without a postmortem.
A probe followed after Haresh approached Banaskantha police with his application, seeking a fair investigation into her death and submitted Instagram messages, witness accounts and background details of their relationship.
"She signed a live-in agreement with me just two weeks before she died," Haresh said. "She wanted to study medicine. We were not harming anyone. We just wanted to live peacefully."
After the couple's live-in arrangement became known to her family, she was forcibly taken back to her village in the last week of June.
A habeas corpus plea was filed by Haresh, but Chandrika was found dead on June 25, just two days before the court was to begin hearing the case.
Initially suspected to be either a cardiac arrest death or a suicide, the case took a serious turn after investigation found inconsistencies in the versions of her family members. Statements from Shivram and other relatives, along with circumstantial evidence, led police to conclude that the death was in fact a planned murder.
"The girl brought dishonour to the family," Shivram reportedly told police. "My brother and I decided that evening itself that this should end."
The FIR records that the conspirators tried to mislead everyone by hanging her body from a ceiling fan to simulate suicide. "To our close relatives, we made it look like she took her own life. We told others that it was a suicide but requested them not to disclose it to anyone it as it would bring dishonour to the family since she was a young woman who had eloped with another man and then killed herself.
We told some other villagers that she died due to a heart attack and that is what we told the court as well," Shivram is quoted as saying in the FIR.
Box 1: Mother still unaware her daughter was murdered
Police sources said Chandrika's mother was not aware of how she died. Her father presented the case as a natural death due to a heart attack. Officials said the mother has not been in a stable mental state since the incident and remains unaware that her daughter was killed by her own family members.
Box 2: Wanted to become either a gynaecologist or a general physician
Having scored 80% in her Class 12 exams, Chandrika cleared NEET 2025 with 490 marks, bettering the score of 380 in the previous attempt. Her partner Haresh told police she wanted to become a gynaecologist or general physician. She was staying in a hostel and was preparing for further studies when she was taken back home by her family and allegedly killed.
Box 3: 'She asked for a lift and became part of my life'
"She just walked up to me and said, 'Are you going to Palanpur? Can I come along?'" Haresh recalled, speaking about the first time he met Chandrika at the Tharad bus stand in Feb this year. "That was it. I didn't know back then that one ride would change everything."
Haresh said they began talking during that short drive and exchanged numbers. "She told me she was preparing for NEET and wanted to become a doctor.
She was full of dreams. I don't know when those small chats evolved into something bigger."
They started messaging on WhatsApp and Instagram. "We would talk every day. She would tell me about her studies, her parents, how they didn't want her to study or be with me. But she never wanted to give up," he said.
"She is gone, but I will never forget that smile on her face the day we first met," Haresh said.