An engineering student was in police custody Thursday after allegedly slicing his girlfriend’s head off with a ceremonial dagger in front of her classmates at an Indian university.
Bijendra Kumar, 23, a diploma student at St. Xavier’s College in Ranchi, in eastern India, allegedly beheaded his 18-year-old girlfriend, Khushbu, with a blade known as a “khukri” as she left the classroom with her friends.
The Hindustan Times reported that Kumar was overpowered by students and security guards, beaten and then arrested by police after the attack Wednesday.
Authorities said Khushbu’s head was sliced off in the attack. Kumar later told police that he loved his girlfriend and wanted to kill her and himself because her parents would not let them marry.
Kumar’s mother, Yamini Devi, was distraught when told of the incident.
“We came to know about his affair with Khushbu two months ago when she ran away from her house and came … to marry my son,” she said. Khushbu’s uncle then intervened and beat Kumar for inciting his niece to elope.
“We were in love for the last five years, but our parents did not allow us to unite, so we decided to die together. After killing her, I was about to kill myself when they caught me,” Kumar was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
FN
