A 23-year-old Dalit house surgeon at the Government Medical College in Siddipet district of Telangana allegedly died by suicide after a senior resident doctor, who had promised to marry her, later refused due to caste differences, police said on Monday.
According to officials, the young doctor injected herself with a herbicide inside the college hostel on January 3 after being distressed over the refusal to marry. She soon fell unconscious and was rushed to a hospital in Siddipet by her roommates. As her condition worsened, she was later shifted to a state-run hospital in Hyderabad, where she died in the early hours of January 4 while undergoing treatment.
Police said the incident came to light after the victim’s sister lodged a complaint. Based on this, a case has been registered under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Prevention of Atrocities Act. The accused senior resident doctor has been arrested.
“The accused had promised to marry her but later backed out citing caste differences. She was deeply upset by this and took the extreme step,” a police official said.
The deceased belonged to a poor family from Jogulamba Gadwal district. She studied in a social welfare school before securing admission to the Government Medical College in Siddipet in 2020. Police said she was known to be bright in academics and also excelled in sports and games.
Her parents work as daily wage labourers, while her elder sister is employed as a software engineer.
Police said the victim was doing her internship at the medical college when she came in contact with the accused in July last year. “They became close during her internship period. The accused later refused to marry her, which caused her severe mental distress,” an official added.
