Pregnant teenager in India strangled to death after she refused abortion

A pregnant teenaged girl was allegedly murdered by the father of her child because she refused to have an abortion.

Nineteen-year-old Sonia Kumari was reportedly murdered by 21-year-old Sanju alis Saleem. Kumari was seven months pregnant, and insisted that Saleem marry her. Saleem refused, and was pressuring her to have an abortion instead. Kumari’s family said the couple would fight over this issue constantly — and ultimately, it proved fatal.

Reports indicate that Kumari met Saleem in the Nangloi, where he and two of his friends took her to Rohtak. There, Saleem strangled her, and the three buried her body in a pit together.

On October 23rd, police were tipped off about the crime, and apprehended Saleem. During an interrogation, he confessed to killing Kumari and the couple’s preborn child. Her family is now calling for justice, saying Saleem had lied to all of them, including using a fake name.

READ: Judge allows murder charges to proceed after teen killed for refusing abortion

“We got to know that she met a boy a few months back,” her mother said. “They became good friends and started talking. It was shocking when we came to know that his real name was Saleem. He confessed to killing my daughter and buried her body. We want strict action against all the accused.”

Her brother, Manish, said they supported Kumari’s desire to get married, and they were terrified when they couldn’t get in touch with her.

“About two months ago, we got to know that she was pregnant. We asked her what she wanted to do and she said that she’ll get married to Sanju and we agreed; but, she said that his parents did not approve of the relationship,” he said. “We started calling her but her phone was switched off. We called Sanju but he didn’t take our call initially. Eventually, he picked up and said that Kumari was with him but she didn’t want to speak to us.”

Saleem and one of his accomplices are in police custody. Police are still trying to find the third person responsible for Kumari’s death.

Editor’s Note: If you are a victim of domestic violence, please visit thehotline.org or call 1-800-799-SAFE.

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