Kothamangalam:  A 23-year-old woman, Sona Eldhose, a Teacher Training Course student from Karukadam in Kothamangalam, was found dead on Saturday in what police have described as a case of suicide. The incident has sparked public outrage after a suicide note and family statements pointed to alleged coercion to convert to another religion as a condition for marriage.

According to the victim’s family, Sona had been in a relationship with Rameez Mohammad, a 24-year-old from Alangad, Aluva, who worked temporarily at Cochin International Airport. The two had met during their college years. In her suicide note, Sona accused Rameez and his family of pressuring her to convert to Islam before marriage and of physically assaulting her when she resisted. Her brother alleged that she was locked in a room and beaten, and that she had been told she would be better off dead if she refused conversion.

Police reports indicate that Rameez had a prior criminal history, including cases related to drug offences and immoral trafficking. Sona’s family claims she initially agreed to the conversion but changed her mind after discovering his alleged infidelity and criminal background. The suicide note, along with WhatsApp messages reportedly showing Rameez encouraging her to go ahead with suicide, have been recovered as evidence.

Rameez was taken into police custody on Monday. Initially registered as an unnatural death, the case has now been upgraded to include charges of abetment of suicide and physical assault. Investigators are analysing the victim’s phone data, and further action against other family members of the accused has not been ruled out.

The death has reignited debate in Kerala about coercive religious conversions and the misuse of relationships to exert such pressure. Community leaders and political voices have called for a thorough investigation and strict punishment for those found guilty, stressing that secular principles must be upheld and that all forms of religious coercion should be condemned.