Student dragged by hair, killed, for complaining against sexual harassment

Seoni, Madhya Pradesh: A 23-year-old student was killed in broad daylight in Madhya Pradesh on Monday by a man she had accused of sexually harassing her and who was pressuring her to drop the case.

The young woman was on her way to college in Seoni, around 370 km from capital Bhopal, when she was dragged by her hair by the accused man, Anil Mishra. He then smashed her head with a stone.

Mishra allegedly wanted her to drop her sexual harassment complaint against him. Both lived in the same village.

The horrific public killing took place around noon, close to the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Government Girls College, where the woman studied.

Anil Mishra, 38, was waiting on his bike. On spotting her, he dragged her to the roadside, pushed her to the ground and smashed her head with a big stone lying nearby, said police officer Arvind Jain.

Some people rushed to help and overpowered Mishra. The woman, who was seriously injured and bleeding badly, died while being taken to hospital.

Mishra has been arrested. The police said while investigations are on, he appeared to have committed the crime as the woman had refused to withdraw the sexual harassment case against him.