Radhika Yadav’s friend accuses her father of making her life miserable

Three days after the shocking murder of 25-year-old tennis player Radhika Yadav in Gurugram, allegedly at the hands of her father, Deepak Yadav, one of her friends posted an emotional video on social media, making several explosive allegations.

Himaanshika Singh Rajput, also a tennis player, accused Deepak Yadav of exerting excessive control over Radhika’s life. She claimed that Radhika lived in a highly restrictive home environment, where her parents allegedly shamed her for wearing short clothes.

‘Shamed her for wearing shorts’

“My best friend Radhika was murdered by her own father. He shot her five times. Four bullets hit her. He'd made her life miserable for years with his controlling, constant criticism. In the end, he listened to so-called friends who were jealous of her success,” Himaanshika posted on her Instagram account, accompanied by a video.

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“She worked so hard in her tennis career and even built her own academy. She was doing so well for herself. But they couldn't stand to see her independent. They shamed her for wearing shorts, for talking to boys, for living life on her own terms. She was rushed to the hospital, but she didn't make it,” Himaanshi claimed.

Radhika was allegedly shot by her father, Deepak Yadav, at their home in Gurugram’s Sector 57. According to police, five shots were fired, with four hitting her, three in the back and one in the shoulder. She was taken to a nearby hospital but succumbed to her injuries. Her last rites were held at the family’s native village in Wazirabad on Friday.

Rules out love jihad angle

Amid circulating rumours of a communal angle to the murder, Himaanshika firmly dismissed the speculation. “People are calling it love jihad, but where’s the evidence?” she asked. “Radhika didn’t talk to many people; she was isolated. Her home was never a place of freedom.”

“We started playing together in 2012 or 2013. We travelled together, played matches together. I never saw her talk to anyone outside her family. She was very reserved, mostly due to restrictions at home. She had to account for every move. Even on video calls, she had to show her parents who she was speaking to. I had to appear on camera to prove it was just me. She couldn’t be late even if her tennis academy was only 50 meters away,” Himaanshika said.

“She loved making videos, taking photographs. But she gradually stopped. They didn't like her being independent,” she added.

Deepak confesses to killing daughter

Meanwhile, in a new revelation, Radhika’s uncle said on Sunday that the accused Deepak Yadav had confessed to him about killing his daughter and said he should be hanged. Talking to reporters in Gurugram, Vijay Yadav, the elder brother of Deepak Yadav, also categorically denied that Radhika Yadav had a tennis academy.

“Deepak's family was well off. Deepak had realised his mistake, and there can be no greater punishment for someone than repentance. The whole family is in shock. Radhika also wanted to work in the advertising industry and become a model. She had composed a song, and everyone in the family was happy about it,” her uncle said.

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Meanwhile, a close friend of Deepak Yadav claimed that the accused had told him that he had committed a sin. He said the accused was proud of his daughter but could not handle certain comments from people.

A WhatsApp chat between Radhika Yadav and her coach, Ajay Yadav, has surfaced, in which the former purportedly talked about leaving the house at any cost and also discussed going abroad. This has led to the speculation of a dispute between the tennis player and her father, but police have clarified that this angle is not being probed.