Karishma Chaudhary, a 20-year-old nursing student from Nagaur, Rajasthan, was subjected to child marriage at age 11 but later returned to her parental house. She subsequently fell in love with Sahdev Bhakar, a nursing teacher in her college who was seeking a divorce from his wife. When Karishma disclosed her desire to marry Sahdev, her family strongly opposed the relationship due to community and family objections. The couple eloped to Jaipur nine months prior, secured live-in relationship documentation, and surrendered to the police seeking protection after receiving death threats from her uncle, Ram Kishore. On June 12, 2025, when Sahdev traveled to Ajmer with Karishma and his friend Harendra to take a government nursing exam, Karishma's family members intercepted and kidnapped Sahdev at the Ajmer bus stand. Sahdev was tortured and murdered with a screwdriver, and his body was dumped near a bus stand field. Thirteen days after Sahdev's murder, Karishma committed suicide at Sahdev's family home. Police arrested several involved family members.
Country: India
State/Province: Rajasthan, India
City/Region: Ajmer
Incident Type: Honor Killing
Relationship Status: Live-in relationship
Relationship Duration: 9 months
Incident Date: June 12, 2025
Relationship Origins:
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How the relationship or connection began.
9 months
Important relationship phases recorded for this case.
Reported red flags or early concern points.
Contributing factors and possible motives from the available sources.
2025-06-12
Recorded relationship or case outcome.
English labels are shown first. Original-language titles are preserved for source verification.
Honor Killing
The incident exhibits a classic pattern of honor-based violence driven by extreme caste or community opposition to romantic self-determination. Karishma Chaudhary's family viewed her autonomous choice of partner as a violation of familial control and social pride. When the couple fled and formalized a live-in agreement, extended family members, including distant and collateral relatives, mobilized to track down, abduct, and violently kill Sahdev Bhakar, leading to Karishma's subsequent suicide from grief.
Police registered a complaint following the abduction reported by Sahdev's father on June 13. Sahdev's body was recovered near a bus stand field bearing severe puncture injuries inflicted with a screwdriver. Police subsequently arrested multiple family members involved in the conspiracy and assault, including Kunnu Ram and Om Prakash. Public commentary criticized law enforcement for failing to provide adequate protection after the couple surrendered and reported life threats nine months prior.
Initial confusion involved family allegations that Karishma was a minor when she eloped, which was refuted by documentation showing she was 18–19 years old. Additionally, distant relatives without direct legal standing or personal grievances voluntarily joined the conspiracy, expanding the suspect group beyond immediate household members.
After eloping nine months prior, Sahdev Bhakar and Karishma Chaudhary moved between Jaipur, Jaisalmer, and Mumbai to evade Karishma's hostile family. Knowing Sahdev had to appear for a government nursing examination on June 12 in Ajmer, Karishma's family monitored or tracked their movements. Upon their arrival at the Ajmer bus stand, family members ambushed Sahdev and his friend Harendra. Sahdev was abducted, tortured with a screwdriver, and killed, while Harendra escaped to raise the alarm. Thirteen days later, overcome by trauma, Karishma died by suicide.
The case illustrates extreme lethality risks in honor-conflict scenarios where victims explicitly disclose intent to break community boundaries, request police protection, and face direct threats from extended family. Failure of protective measures enabled family members to track down the couple at a predictable public venue during an official examination.
Threats of lethal violence in honor-based disputes must be treated as critical security risks requiring immediate state protection and relocation support. Interventions in child marriage and domestic coercion require continuous protective mechanisms for surviving victims.
Explicit death threats issued over the phone by Karishma's uncle, Ram Kishore, after the couple eloped and filed for live-in relationship protection.
Eyewitness account provided by Sahdev's friend Harendra, who witnessed the bus stand ambush and abduction and immediately identified the family members involved.
Sahdev's recovered body showing severe traumatic wounds caused by a screwdriver, live-in legal documentation, and early police complaints filed by the couple.
Harendra reported that Karishma's family members ambushed them at the Ajmer bus stand, forced Sahdev into a vehicle, and abducted him while Harendra managed to escape. Karishma gave a media interview before her death demanding the death penalty for her family members.
Follow-up reports revealed that 13 days after Sahdev's body was discovered, Karishma Chaudhary committed suicide while residing with Sahdev's supportive family.
It remains unconfirmed how Karishma's family specifically learned about Sahdev's exact travel schedule and location at the Ajmer bus stand on the exam day.