Honour killing in Uttar Pradesh, India: Father strangles teenage daughter

Sandhya
Age: 17
Strangled: February 10, 2024
Residence: Siddharthnagar, Uttar Pradesh
Origin: India
Children: None
Perpetrator: Father

Prahalad Kumar, a resident of Siddharthnagar, Uttar Pradesh, was arrested by local police for the murder of his 17-year-old daughter, Sandhya. Kumar confessed to strangling her with a muffler due to her relationship with a boy from a different caste.

Sandhya's body was discovered on February 10th in Kharagwar village, Siddharthnagar, Uttar Pradesh. Initially, Sandhya's mother implicated the boyfriend in the murder.

The investigation led to Prahalad Kumar's arrest in Lucknow after discrepancies were found in his alibi. Prahalad Kumar's confession detailed his fabricated alibi of traveling to Mumbai for a job, while in reality, he remained in Siddharthnagar.

During interrogation, Prahalad Kumar revealed his disapproval of Sandhya's relationship with her classmate, citing caste differences. He confessed to planning the murder under societal pressure and to safeguard his reputation.

What is an honour killing?

An honour killing is a murder in the name of honour. If a brother murders his sister to restore family honour, it is an honour killing. According to activists, the most common reasons for honour killings are as the victim:

refuses to cooperate in an arranged marriage.
wants to end the relationship.
was the victim of rape or sexual assault.
was accused of having a sexual relationship outside of marriage.

Human rights activists believe that 100,000 honour killings are carried out every year, most of which are not reported to the authorities and some are even deliberately covered up by the authorities themselves, for example because the perpetrators are good friends with local policemen, officials or politicians. Violence against girls and women remains a serious problem in Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Iran, Serbia and Turkey.