Honour killing: 17-yr-old girl strangled by father, 3 held

Ahmednagar: A 17-year-old girl in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra was allegedly killed by her father who was against her friendship with a boy studying with her in a college here, police said on Sunday.

Jamkhed police station inspector Pandurang Pawar said they suspected it to be a case of 'honour killing'.

The incident took place in Chondi village, the native place of state minister Ram Shinde, who demanded stringent punishment for the accused.

The deceased's father and two maternal uncles were arrested in connection with the incident, Pawar said.

The girl used to frequently chat with the boy over phone and go to college with him on his two-wheeler, he said.

Her father Pandurang Shreerang Saygunde, 51, asked her several times to discontinue her friendship with the boy but the girl failed to heed his advice, he said. On March 23, Saygunde, in a fit of anger, allegedly throttled his daughter to death at their home in Chondi village, located around 60 km from here, Pawar said.

He also allegedly tried to burn the body with the help of the girl's two uncles and on March 24 lodged a missing complaint about her at Jamkhed police station, he said.

The half-burnt body was spotted by the deceased's sister on March 25 near a water body close to their house, he said.

The police later sent the body for postmortem.

They questioned around 35 people and based on information and evidences gathered in connection with the incident, Saygunde and the girl's uncles - Rajendra Jagannath Shinde (30) and Dnyandev Jagannath Shinde (35) - were arrested on Saturday evening, Pawar said.

The accused were booked under Indian Penal Code Sections 302 (murder), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention), he said, adding that a probe was underway in the case.

When contacted, Shinde, who is also the guardian minister of Ahmednagar, said, "The incident is shocking and those found guilty should be awarded maximum punishment."

Chondi village was also the birthplace of late Ahilyabai Holkar, the former ruler and queen of the Maratha- Malwa kingdom.