India: Woman bites off ex’s tongue after forced kiss attempt in Kanpur

In a startling incident in Uttar Pradesh’s Kanpur district, a 35-year-old married man named Champi allegedly followed his former girlfriend to a pond on Monday afternoon after she had gone to collect clay for a stove.

The woman, who was engaged to be married to someone chosen by her parents, had ended communication with Champi. Police say he had grown distressed over her decision and would regularly attempt to contact her despite her distancing herself.

According to an NDTV report, when the woman was alone near the pond, Champi approached, grabbed her and attempted to forcibly kiss her and molest her. The woman resisted, and in the ensuing struggle she bit his tongue so severely that a portion was reportedly severed.

Local residents heard his cries, intervened and he was taken initially to a community health centre and then referred to a larger hospital in Kanpur for treatment. Police have registered a case, and further legal proceedings are under way.

The case casts a harsh spotlight on forced physical advances and the dangers faced by women even when they attempt to move on from relationships. While such incidents of assault by former partners are not new, the dramatic nature of the response — the biter turning the tables — is rare. OneIndia also reported the incident, noting that the man was troubled by the woman’s upcoming marriage and had followed her to the pond before the attempt.

For law-enforcement, the incident raises questions about how to prevent repeated unwanted approaches by former partners and ensure safety for women engaged to be married or otherwise distancing from prior relationships. For the woman, any upcoming wedding will now proceed under the shadow of a traumatic encounter rather than routine excitement. For the accused, the medical emergency that resulted from his own actions may complicate his situation legally and socially.

As investigators piece together the timeline, the case underlines the consequences of ignoring personal boundaries and the lengths to which individuals may go in a state of distress or rejection — and how sometimes the victim fights back in unexpected ways.