The accused, Saurabh, had asked her to make tea for him, who killed her after she refused
Team Clarion
HALDWANI — Uttarakhand police on Saturday arrested a man named Saurabh Raj for killing his wife Afsana who became Aastha after she converted to Hinduism to get married to him eight years ago.
On 12th April Saurabh killed Afsana and her dead body was found at their rented house in Uttarakhand’s Haldwani.
The police arrested Saurabh, who is originally from Utrakhand’s Rudrapur after Afsana’s family had lodged a complaint against him. According to the police, the accused strangled her to death, suspecting her of an extramarital affair. The police also said the accused had asked Afsana to make tea for him, who killed her after she had refused.
The body was found two days later after the landlord went to clean the room.
According to the landlord, Gangaram, Surabh used to drink alcohol which Afsana did not like. “In fact the day he killed her, he had come home drunk,” Gangaram said.
The violence against women like this often remains unreported in mainstream media especially when the accused is a Hindu. However this incident was widely criticised on social media.
“You’ll hardly see this news being reported or talked about by @smitaprakash’s @ANI and other Godi media anchors because the accused in this case is Saurabh and the victim is Afsana (Aastha) and there is no ‘Love Jihad’ angle in this case,” Prominent fact checker Mohammed Zubair wrote on X.
“Afsana,who became Aastha for the sake of love,was killed by her Husband Saurabh in Haldwani. Media will not call this as Dharm Yudh. Politicians will not ask for Justice. Right Wing Handles will not trend a Hashtag. Whatsapp Uncle & Aunty will not forward this in their groups,” wrote another X user Mohammed Haseeb.
