PATNA: What began as a friendship on Instagram and blossomed into a year-long romance ended in heartbreak and tragedy in Bihar’s Purnia district.A 19-year-old student, who had eloped with her boyfriend after her family arranged her marriage to someone else, died just hours after the couple tied the knot at Purnia Junction railway station. The boyfriend has been taken into custody and is being interrogated, police said.The deceased has been identified as Manisha Kumari, 19, a BA Part-I student from Butterbari under the Nagar police station area in Araria district. She died on Monday evening at GMCH Purnia shortly after falling ill near the City Kali Temple.Police said Manisha had been in a relationship with Dilkhush Kumar, 20, an Intermediate student from Palasi in Araria, for about a year. The two met on Instagram and grew close through daily conversations. Trouble began when Manisha’s family fixed her marriage elsewhere. Unwilling to accept the arrangement, the couple decided to leave home and start a new life together.On Monday, August 10, at around 11.30 am, Dilkhush took Manisha from Araria, and they reached Purnia Junction by 2 pm.With no family members present and no rituals performed, Dilkhush applied vermilion to Manisha’s forehead inside the station premises and declared her his wife. They spent the night at the station. Dilkhush even posted a wedding photo on Instagram that evening.For a few hours, it felt like a new beginning. But fate had other plans.On Monday evening, the couple walked from Rambagh towards the City Kali Temple to offer prayers. It was a hot day, and on the way, Manisha complained of severe dizziness. Her condition deteriorated rapidly. Panicked, Dilkhush seated her by the roadside and sought help from locals. With their assistance, she was rushed to Government Medical College Hospital (GMCH), Purnia. However, she died during treatment.The news shattered both families. Manisha’s brother said they had been searching for her since she went missing. After seeing the wedding post on Instagram, they went to Dilkhush’s house but were turned away. Later that evening, it was Dilkhush’s friends who informed them of Manisha’s death.K Hat police reached the hospital, took custody of the body, and sent it for a post-mortem examination.“Dilkhush is currently in police custody and is being questioned. Officers are reconstructing the timeline—from their departure from Araria and the marriage at Purnia Junction to the sudden death near the temple,” said K Hat SHO Jaiprakash Singh.He added that the exact cause of death would be confirmed only after the post-mortem report is received. For now, police are investigating all possible angles.
