Woman in India beaten to death with iron rod by cousin after refusing to marry him, police says

A 25-year-old woman was brutally battered to death with an iron rod in India allegedly by her cousin after she refused to marry him, authorities have said.

The incident was reported on Friday when the woman’s body was found in a park in national capital Delhi on Friday afternoon.

“We received information that the body of a 25-year-old girl was found in a park near Aurobindo College in South Delhi’s Malviya Nagar [area]. An iron rod was found near her body,” a Delhi police official said, according to Indian media.

The victim, identified as Nargis, was crossing the park when her cousin Irfan called her to speak to him, said authorities. However, when she refused to speak to him and rejected his marriage proposal, Irfan allegedly attacked her with an iron rod he had brought with him, leading to Nargis’ death, they said.

The accused surrendered to police a few hours after committing the crime, said officials.

A police official also confirmed the presence of an iron rod near the victim’s body, reported news channel NDTV.

Police officials said Irfan confessed that he had wanted to marry Nargis, who was pursuing a stenographer’s course in the Malviya Nagar area. But his proposal was rejected by both her family and Nargis herself, citing his lack of steady employment as a reason.

According to Irfan’s statement to the police, he had been planning the murder three days before the tragic event.

He reportedly waited at the park, knowing Nargis would pass by while returning from her stenography class. Upon her arrival, Irfan called her over, ostensibly to discuss matters.

But when she declined to engage with him, he allegedly pulled out the iron rod from his bag and viciously attacked her.

Irfan’s rage stemmed from the rejection of his marriage proposal and the subsequent breakdown of communication with Nargis, according to South Delhi deputy police commissioner Chandan Chowdhury.

“The boy was disturbed after his marriage proposal was rejected and the girl stopped talking to him or taking his calls. That is why he killed her,” he was quoted as saying to NDTV.

Swati Maliwal, chairperson of the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW), said the capital has become “extremely unsafe” for women, citing another murder of a woman in Delhi’s Dabri area the night before.

“Delhi, the national capital, has become extremely unsafe. Two incidents have come to light today. A woman was shot in Dabri and another was battered to death with an iron rod in broad daylight. In the entire country, the names of girls are changed in newspapers but the crimes do not stop,” Ms Maliwal said.

“I want to ask the centre [India’s federal government that is responsible for law and order matters in Delhi] how many more deaths will need to happen before they fix the accountability of the Delhi Police?” she asked.

“The DCW has taken note of the incidents and notices are being issued to the Delhi Police,” she said.

In another horrifying incident, a 20-year-old man from Delhi was arrested in May this year on suspicion of stabbing a teenage girl multiple times and bludgeoning her to death in full public view.

The attacker stabbed the victim at least 16 times before smashing her with a concrete block in an assault that lasted for nearly 90 seconds.