Woman Killed Allegedly by the Accused for Refusing to Withdraw Sexual Harassment Case Against Him

Six months after a 23-year-old student filed a sexual harassment case against Anil Mishra, he dragged her by her hair, pushed her on the roadside, and then smashed her head with a stone on Monday afternoon, which has led to her death, police has said.
The case was filed against Mishra on February 15, 2018 in Madhya Pradesh’s Seoni district, at Lakhanwada police station, by the BA student.

Mishra, who belongs to upper caste, had been reportedly threatening her to withdraw the case, while the hearing is underway in the court.

The incident took place in Seoni district, which is around 370 km away from state capital Bhopal. The accused allegedly killed her in broad daylight near Kotwali police station, when she was on her way to her college.

According to the police, when the passersby raised an alarm, the accused tried to flee the spot, and locals took her to a hospital, where doctors declared her dead.

Police inspector of Kotwali police station, Seoni and officer in-charge of the case, Vivek Raj Singh, said, “When the accused, Anil Mishra, was trying to escape, a home guard named Wakil Khan nabbed him on the spot. He has been booked under several sections of the IPC and has been sent to the jail.”

The incident

The victim was a resident of Phulwari village, and was studying in the final year of B.A. The accused lived in the same village.
After the death of her father, the family of three including her mother and younger brother were struggling to make ends meet.

The victim was working as a helper in Mishra’s house, where he allegedly kept harassing her sexually. After months of sexual harassment, she reportedly had left the work, and had filed a complaint against Mishra. 

On Monday, she reportedly left for college as usual. According to the witnesses’ account, when she reached near Kotwali police station, Mishra was waiting for her on his bike. After they had a conversation, Mishra reportedly got furious, and dragged her to the roadside. He pushed her to the ground and smashed her head with a big stone lying nearby, said police officer Arvind Jain.

Some people reportedly rushed to help, and overpowered Mishra. The woman, who was seriously injured, and was bleeding, died while on her way to the hospital. The police said that while investigations are on, he appeared to have committed the crime as the woman had refused to withdraw the sexual harassment case against him.

Difficult times for the family

The spine-chilling incident, which happened a week before Raksha Bandhan, has broken the family. Talking to media, victim’s mother Sarita broke down. She said, “She was the sole bread earner of the family. Her death has broken us. She was studying hard to get a government job, and somehow was managing the family. She had a dream to teach her brother in a private school, however, it remained unfulfilled.”