Pregnant Minor Dies After Jumping Off Moving Train, Teen Boyfriend Arrested

A pregnant 17-year-old died in an apparent suicide after she jumped off a running train in the Indian state of Maharashtra earlier this week.

The unnamed girl — identified as a class XII student who lived with relatives in Mumbai following her father's death — had left home Monday under the pretext of work, but she instead jumped on the tracks between Nahur and Mulund stations at around 9 a.m., newspaper The Times of India first reported.

Members of Kurla's government railway police (GRP) had responded to a station master's report of a girl that had died of a suicide near Ghatkopar Sunday when they discovered the minor's body, a report by the Hindustan Times said. They also found the girl's umbrella, purse and mobile phone near her.

Police registered a case of accidental death and sent the body of the teenager to Rajawadi Hospital for an autopsy, which later revealed that the girl had been five months pregnant when she died. Additionally, it was discovered that the girl had suffered head injuries from the stones on the tracks, as per The Times of India.

Authorities did not find a suicide note, but they were able to contact the girl's family using her phone. It was revealed that the teenager's family was not aware of her pregnancy, which she had allegedly been distressed with.

"On investigating the case, we found out that the girl had an affair with her classmate and had conceived five months ago," a police officer from the Kurla GRP was quoted as saying by the Hindustan Times.

The classmate, also 17, was arrested and charged with rape and suicide abetment following a complaint filed by the girl's older sister. He was presented before a court for juveniles and sent to an observation home located in the nearby port city of Dongri Tuesday.

It was unclear if the boy had been involved in the teenager's apparent suicide.

The legal age of sexual consent in India is 18 years old, which implies that any sexual activity among individuals who are below that age would amount to statutory rape regardless of consent, according to Indian legal news outlet Live Law.