'They Will Kill Me, Mom': Woman, 22, Found Dead At Guwahati Homestay, Male Friend Arrested

The police in Guwahati arrested a 26-year-old man after a 22-year-old Gauhati University student was found dead in a homestay room in which they were staying, early on Saturday. The man said she hanged herself, but police said they do not believe his version and suspect murder. The post-mortem examination report was awaited at the time of filing this report. Police said no blood was found on the body or the floor.

But two key angles have emerged so far. One is a family friend's claim that the young woman, who'd told her family she'd stay the night at a friend's home, called her mother in the middle of the night to say, "They will kill me," before her phone was "probably snatched"; though this claim remains to be investigated. Another piece is the homestay caretaker's statement that he heard a man shouting during the night, "asking someone to get up".

Since the woman was a Hindu and her boyfriend, who has been arrested, is a Muslim, the death triggered a protest by some organisations alleging "love jihad", a conspiracy theory promoted by right-wing Hindu groups claiming that Muslim men trick Hindu women into relationships to convert them.

What Police Have Said So Far

The woman, Nimisha Thakuria, a Sociology student at Gauhati University and a resident of Dharapur, was staying with Asif Ali, the arrested man, at the homestay in Garal on the city's outskirts.

Guwahati West Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Bolin Deori told NDTV that Ali told them Thakuria died by suicide. "We don't believe his version. We need to continue our investigation," Deori said. "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."

According to Deori, police were alerted by the local health facility after Thakuria was brought there unconscious. She was referred to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), where doctors declared her dead. Deori said police are questioning the homestay owner, caretakers and other staff.

Family Friend's Big Claim

Gautam Das, a neighbour and friend of Thakuria's father, spoke to NDTV on behalf of the family outside the post-mortem hall at GMCH. "The girl's father kept calling me, but I missed his calls as I was busy. When I called him back, he informed me that his elder daughter had been murdered, and we immediately went to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital," Das said.

"Later, we got information that the girl had left home yesterday evening around 5 pm. She told her family that she was going to a friend's home to have some snacks. Around 8 pm, her mother called her and asked where she was. She replied that they were having dinner and said that if she got late, she would stay at her friend's house for the night," Das said, adding, "Again, around 10 pm, her mother called her. The girl said that she would stay there for the night."

He then made a claim that could be key to the probe. "At around 2 am, the girl 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," Das said.

"Nimisha's parents then went to the nearby Azara police station and informed the police about everything. At that time, the sub-inspector of the police station was on patrol duty. The police received information from a health facility that a girl had been admitted there," he said.

"The police then suggested that we go to GMCH, as she had been referred there. We reached GMCH around 5 am, where the doctor declared her dead," Das said.

"We strongly suspect that this is a murder case because the girl had called her mother and told her that 'they would kill her'. The police investigation is going on, and we hope that the truth will come out," he further said.

'Heard A Man Shouting'

Bipul Bailung, the homestay's cook and caretaker, told NDTV he heard a man shouting during the night. "I can't say exactly when they booked the room or when they arrived. But I heard a male voice screaming, 'Dada, utho, utho' (Brother, get up, get up), asking someone to get up," Bailung said.

"I called my two other colleagues, and we went outside, but we found nobody there. We stopped and looked towards the main road, where we saw police flashing their torchlights and calling us. They asked us what we were doing outside at night. We told them that we had heard a male voice screaming from our guest house," he said.

"Later, the police moved away, and we came back to our homestay. When we stopped at the entrance of the homestay again, I heard a crying voice," Bailung said.

"We went towards the room the crying was coming from. There, we found a boy holding a girl, whose body was lying on the floor," he said.

"I called the owners. They came, called an ambulance, and then they left," Bailung said.

"They had booked Room Number 10, but Room 9 was empty, so they used that room as well." Some staff members said the two had stayed at the homestay before.

Some protesters also raised allegations about the circumstances of the death. Police reached the spot and appealed to them to clear the road, after which the blockade was lifted.

(With inputs by Jyotishman Sharma)