Karnataka: 19-year-old girl succumbs to suspicious injuries at Belagavi hospital; parents say rape

A 19-year-old girl, hospitalised for treatment of some suspicious injuries, succumbed at a private hospital on Thursday. Her family had suspicions that she was raped and admitted to hospital when her condition worsened.

An unidentified youth had brought the unconscious girl for treatment at District Hospital on Wednesday night. As her condition worsened, her parents had her shifted to a private hospital for treatment where she died on Thursday.

The 19-year-old started working at a call centre in Bengaluru about a month ago.

The girl’s parents told the police that their daughter was raped and after her condition worsened, she was brought to the hospital. The victim also had injuries on head and cigarette butt burns on her body.

Her parents told the police that their daughter had called them on October 11 from Bengaluru and informed them that she was coming to Belagavi and had sent a selfie from the bus stand.

In the selfie, her face was swollen, hence they suspect the circumstances of her death.

The youth, who had brought the girl to be admitted in the District Hospital, fled the same night. He later used the girl’s phone SIM card and sent a WhatsApp message to her mother.

In the message, he mentioned that the girl’s cell phone got damaged while alighting from the bus and that it was kept in her small bag. In the hospital, he was told that it would become a medico-legal case and thus he could not meet the parents and left, the mother recounted.

He reportedly told them that he, too, had left and would have to damage his SIM card as well and told her parents not to trouble him.

The youth’s phone was “switched off” and the police were looking for him.

APMC police were reportedly investigating the case.