BHOPAL: Tension gripped Madhya Pradesh's Narsinghpur district after CCTV footage emerged on Monday, revealing the murder of Class 12 student, Sandhya Chaudhary, inside the district hospital.
The incident occurred on June 27 and was allegedly perpetrated by her jilted lover, Abhishek Koshti.
Sandhya was attacked publicly while seated outside the Trauma Centre of the hospital.
Despite the presence of several attendants and hospital staff, no one intervened.
In the footage, Koshti confronts Sandhya, engages in a brief conversation, then physically assaults her, slashing her throat with a knife.
He attempted to harm himself before fleeing the premises on a motorcycle.
A nursing officer who witnessed the event informed police that Koshti threatened her when staff attempted to intervene. "He warned me not to interfere or he would kill me too," the officer stated.
Sandhya, a resident of Patel Ward in Narsinghpur and daughter of Hiralal Chaudhary, had visited the hospital to see an acquaintance admitted in the maternity ward.
She was later seen sitting outside room number 22 of the Trauma Centre, where the fatal assault took place.
Police reported that Koshti frequented the hospital from noon on June 27.
At approximately 2:30 pm, he saw Sandhya, spoke briefly with her, and followed her to the Trauma Centre.
Despite the presence of hospital staff and security guards, he executed the attack and escaped. Sandhya died at the scene due to excessive bleeding.
Police and forensic teams arrived shortly after the incident. Sandhya's body remained at the location for several hours during the investigation.
Her family, upon being notified, staged a road blockade demanding immediate action. The protest was called off later that night after senior officials assured a thorough probe.
Narsinghpur SP Mrigakhi Deka confirmed to TOI that the accused was arrested within an hour of the incident.
Regarding the possible motive, the SP stated, "As per the accused's statement, they had known each other for over two years, beginning with a social media friendship. From January this year, he suspected she was seeing someone else and claimed she was 'cheating on him.' He admitted to planning to kill her and take his own life. He tried to harm himself after the attack but failed."
At the time of the incident, two guards were posted outside the Trauma Centre. Nevertheless, the accused managed to escape the hospital premises. The murder has raised serious concerns about security and emergency response at public hospitals. Following the incident, panic ensued among patients in the Trauma Centre, with several choosing to be discharged early.