"If He's Guilty, Punish Him": Mother Of Guwahati Mystery Death Case Accused

Her son, Mohammad Asif Ali, was unwell. He spent Friday afternoon sleeping and stepped out in the evening, promising his mother that he would be back. The next morning came the news of her son's arrest in the mysterious death of his girlfriend at a homestay on the outskirts of Guwahati. The woman has now called for his punishment if her son is found guilty.

Guwahati Student Death Case

A 22-year-old Gauhati University student was found critically ill at a homestay on the outskirts of Guwahati. She was taken to a nearby health facility and subsequently shifted to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital, where doctors declared her dead.

The woman was staying with Asif Ali at the homestay in Garal on the city's outskirts. Asif told police that the woman died by suicide.

"We don't believe his version. We need to continue our investigation," Guwahati West Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Bolin Deori had told NDTV on Saturday.

"The inquiry is in the preliminary stage. And we suspect this as a kind of murder," he said, adding, "We haven't found blood on the body or the floor, and our investigation is on."

The woman's father has alleged that his daughter was gang-raped before she was killed.

"The marks on her body tell us that she was tortured before she was murdered," he said.

What Asif's Parents Said

Asif comes from a family of daily-wage labourers. He earns a living as a painter and sometime works for ride-hailing app Rapido.

"We are poor and earn our livelihood as daily-wage workers... The girl had visited our house only once."

According to Asif's father, the woman called him on Friday when he was resting and asked him to meet her. Asif allegedly suggested that they meet in the evening.

"My son took her to the hospital and, with the help of security personnel, got her admitted. He loved her very much, and they had been in a relationship for the past five years," Asif's father said.

Asif's mother was aware of his relationship with a Hindu woman but never supported it because of religious differences.

"My wife opposed their relationship because the girl was Hindu and we are Muslim. She told him that the relationship would not be possible because of their different religions," he added.

The woman is said to have visited Asif's house on Eid when his mother allegedly explained to her the difference between the two families.

"The girl visited our house once during Eid. I told her that she was still studying and that my son had also studied up to the third semester of his BA. I explained that she is Hindu and we are Muslim, so the relationship would not be accepted by our families," she said in a conversation with NDTV.

Asif's mother narrated the same chain of events and said that her son was unwell and had been sleeping throughout the day.

"Later, he left the house. When I asked him where he was going, he said he would be back, but he never returned," she said, adding, "If my son is guilty, he should be punished. We just want to know whether the girl called her mother and told her that she was being tortured."

2 AM Distress Call

According to the woman's father, she called her mother at 2 am and informed the family that she was being assaulted. The woman is said to have told her mother that she had been beaten and kicked in the chest and was having difficulty breathing. She allegedly told her that people inside the room had locked the door and were assaulting her.

"At around 2 am, the woman called her mother and was crying. She said, 'They will kill me, Mom.' She repeated that they would kill her. After that, her phone was probably snatched," Deori said.

The family set out looking for their daughter while repeatedly calling her mobile phone.