Congress leader's daughter Neha stabbed to death by Fayaz for rejecting his advances, arrested
Hubli, Karnataka, India 
17 April, 2024
Case Summary
In Karnataka's Hubballi, 24-year-old Neha Hiremath, MCA student at BV Bhoomaraddi College of Engineering and Technology, was fatally stabbed on campus by Fayaz, a fellow BCA student. The victim was the daughter of Congress Corporator Niranjan Hiremath. The assailant attacked Neha with a knife while she was leaving the campus. Despite her attempts to escape, she was stabbed multiple times in the neck, resulting in her death. Fayaz, who had reportedly been pressuring Neha to enter a relationship with him, was arrested after fleeing the scene. Police suspect that his motive was retaliation for Neha's rejection of his advances. The incident sparked outrage, with Congress leaders and student groups such as ABVP demanding justice for Neha. The police arrested Fayaz who was on the run after the murder, and further probe is underway. Neha Hiremath's father had at the time said that Neha was being forced to convert to Islam and that the murder is a conspiracy. He had also said that Fayaz was working with others who were trained in 'Love Jihad'. He had also questioned the state government for lack of action, claiming that the govt was appeasing Muslims. Later, the father apologized to the Congress government. The case was later transferred to the CID. The CID filed a chargesheet claiming that there was no love jihad angle and that Neha was murdered by Fayaz for rejecting his advances.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
In this case, the father of the victim specifically said that his daughter, Neha, was targeted because of her religious identity of being a Hindu. He also said that there was a conspiracy afoot where Muslim men target Hindu women, force them to convert to Islam, and when they refuse, they are mercilessly killed like Neha was. While this statement from the father would ordinarily be enough to classify a case as a religiously motivated hate crime, this case has a few more layers. The father later apologised to the Congress state government for his statements claiming that he had made the statements questioning the government in a fit of grief and rage. The CID, which the father has reposed his faith in has claimed that there was no 'love jihad' angle in the case and the father has not denounced the findings of the CID so far. Owing to the changing statements of the father and the findings of the CID, which has not been contested by the father of the victim, this case is being categorized under 'undecided'. In the future, if the father reaffirms his statements or more information emerges, it would be added to the hate crime database.
Victim Details
Total Victim
1
Deceased
1
Gender
- Male 0
- Female 1
- Third Gender 0
- Unknown 0
Caste
- SC/ST 0
- OBC 0
- General 0
- Unknown 1
Age Group
- Minor 0
- Adult 1
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 0
Case Status
Arrested
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
