A 21-year-old student was shot dead in broad daylight right outside her college in the Indian state of Haryana yesterday. Security footage of the incident that went viral on Twitter showed a man trying to force her into a car before shooting her.
At around 3:40 pm (IST) on Monday, the final year commerce student, Nikita Tomar, was standing outside her college in Ballabgarh in Faridabad, where she had gone to give an exam.
In his statement to the police, Tomar’s father said: "My daughter went for an examination at the college. He tried to forcibly make her sit in his car, but she refused. After a brief scuffle, he shot her."
After the video went viral, police officials told Indian media outlets that the attacker and his friend were waiting in a car for the woman to come out. He spotted her walking out with a friend and got out of the car to try and kidnap Tomar.
The security video shows the victim and her friend desperately trying to dodge the gun-waving attacker. Unsuccessful at forcing her into the car, the attacker shot Tomar and fled the spot, leaving the victim bleeding on the road as her friend looked on, horrified.
Reports say that she died on the spot.
According to a police official, Touseef, identified as the shooter, knew Nikita. Apparently, this was not his first attempt to kidnap her. “He had kidnapped her in 2018 too,” the cop said.
The woman's father had complained against the attacker in 2018 but had withdrawn it, according to the police.
"We complained earlier in 2018 about Touseef harassing my daughter and we had withdrawn the complaint to protect our daughter's name. Now they have killed my daughter," the father said, according to an Indian news website.
Cops have said that they have arrested Touseef and his friend.
The report added that Tomar's mother said: "I want justice for my daughter…."
The National Commission for Woman has taken note of the incident from the video circulating online and has written to the Haryana police chief for immediate action. And, hashtag #JusticeforNikitaTomar was seen trending in India, with tweeps demanding strict punishment for the attacker.
