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In Karukadom, a quiet corner of Kothamangalam in Kerala’s Ernakulam district, Sona Eldhose’s home sits tucked between a line of trees, its pale walls dulled by time and rain. The house is filled with visitors — politicians, media, priests, and nuns — offering condolences and, often, political commentary. Her mother Bindu and brother Basil move between grief and the constant retelling of events that led to Sona’s death.
It has been only days since Sona’s body was found, and just three months since the family lost Sona’s father, Eldhose — a double blow that has left the small household reeling. In this short span, their grief has become entangled with a swirl of police inquiries, television crews, and a steady stream of visitors. Priests and nuns from various dioceses arrived, as did Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, including Union Ministers Suresh Gopi and George Kurian. Local functionaries of groups like the Hindu Mahasabha and Hindu Aikya Vedi also milled about.
The death of the 21-year-old has quickly spiralled into a communal issue. What began as a police investigation into her suspected suicide, which took place on August 9, is now at the centre of heated debates on religious conversion, coercion, and interfaith relationships.
Sona’s handwritten note — accusing her partner Ramees, his family, and friends of harassment and pressure to convert to Islam — has become a political pamphlet for the Syro-Malabar Church and leaders of the BJP. They are now leading a campaign for stronger laws against what they allege are “forced conversions” or “Love Jihad.”
Social media storms and protest marches followed, with political leaders demanding that the police book the accused under provisions relating to religious conversion, and church representatives terming it a “warning sign” for Christian families in the state.
The police have so far not registered charges under such sections, saying evidence is still being gathered. But the case has already entered Kerala’s polarised discourse on “love jihad,” a term rejected by many but invoked in political and religious speeches in recent years.
Amid the growing noise, we travelled to Sona’s home in Karukadom to hear from her family.
The story of Sona Eldhose
“Sona and Ramees had known each other since college, when she was studying BA Malayalam at UC College in Aluva in 2022,” Sona’s brother Basil told me. “Their friendship had grown into a relationship, and after graduation, they began talking about marriage.”
It was around this time, Basil said, that their father died — a loss the family was still struggling with. “Since Sona wanted to marry, we thought we would wait for one year to pass after dad’s demise and conduct the wedding,” he recalled.
Ramees’s family had made it clear they wanted Sona to convert, Basil said, and insisted she go to Ponnani in Malappuram for the process. Sona agreed, and hence, so did her family. “Ramees’s mother had told us she too had converted to Islam to marry his father. They were clear about all that from the get-go,” Sona’s mother, Bindu, told me later.
According to Johncy, a close friend of Sona’s who spoke to me over phone, Sona learnt during this time that Ramees was caught at some lodge over an alleged “case of immoral trafficking.”
“I don’t know the details,” Johncy said. “I didn’t press Sona. I only listened to her as she shared whatever she was comfortable to talk about. She told me that Ramees denied the allegations initially, but when presented with evidence he had no option but to admit guilt.”
But despite the incident, Johncy said, Sona was willing to forgive him and marry him through a court wedding. “She just did not want to convert anymore.”
It was Johncy and her husband who arranged the formalities for a court wedding in Adimali, scheduling the date for August 2. When they met on the day at Moovattupuzha KSRTC bus stand, Johncy recalled, she noticed Sona’s cheeks were red and swollen. “I asked her what happened. She said Ramees had hit her. When I turned to him and asked why, he refused to say anything.”
By evening, however, Ramees persuaded Sona to abandon the plan in Adimali and come to his family home in Aluva, Johncy said. “He assured her there was no need for conversion after all. So we let it go and the plan to get married in Adimali was dropped,” she said.
When Sona called Johncy later that night, she said she had come to a very crowded house. “Besides Ramees’s parents, Sona said there were several relatives and friends. She told me that they offered her a drink, which she refused. She said she felt uncomfortable, that she had been locked in a room, and that the family was planning to take her to Ponnani for conversion,” said Johncy.
“It was the entire family — even Ramees’s mother and father — behaving like this to a young woman,” Basil said.
According to Basil, Sona told her friend, in front of Ramees, that all of this would become a big problem if her brother came to know about it. Soon after, she was allowed to leave, dropped home by a friend of Ramees’s. The next day, she went to class as if nothing had happened.
“Even the fact that Ramees was caught from a lodge — she hadn’t told me,” Basil said. “Maybe she was worried I would go there and create an issue.”
It was only during her funeral that he learned the full story, when Johncy and her husband came to the church and told him what had happened. “She died because of the harassment she faced at that house,” Basil said. “And when Ramees saw she was still moving strongly despite it, he said he would withdraw from the wedding. All this pushed her into agony.”
The police later told the family that Sona and Ramees had exchanged messages on WhatsApp, where he told her he would not marry her if she didn’t convert. “She replied that she would die, and Ramees just said, ‘go die then.’”
This exchange is mentioned in the handwritten note that she left behind, which has now become central to the case.
The note that changed everything
Sona’s note opens with a stark line — “I can’t live with such betrayal.” She wrote that she had once forgiven Ramees, after he was caught in a case of “immoral trafficking.” Yet, she said, he had shown her “again and again” that he had no love for her.
She described agreeing to a registered marriage, only to be taken to his home and told by his family that it would happen only if she converted to their religion. Even after she consented, Sona alleged, Ramees, his friends, and his family “continued the cruelty,” insisting she stay in their house.
She accused Ramees of showing neither guilt nor love, and wrote that he, with his family and friends, had “together brought me to death today.” The letter ended with a farewell to her mother and brother, saying in a final line that she was going to her father.
Following the discovery of the note, police took Ramees, a temporary employee at Nedumbassery airport, into custody for questioning. Officers said he was being interrogated to verify the claims made in Sona’s letter and to establish the events leading up to her death. They also summoned members of his family, named in the note, to record their statements.
Politics at the doorstep
The Eldhose home has become a constant stop for politicians and activists since Sona’s death. Even as I sat with Basil, visitors came and went — two priests and nuns arrived, followed by a group of women led by Mahila Aikya Vedi state general secretary Bindu Mohan, who stayed with the family for nearly an hour before speaking to the media about “conversion” and “love jihad.”
On the suggestion of several visitors — which the family felt was a good idea — they were preparing to petition the Chief Minister to hand the case to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), citing suspicions about Ramees and his family’s links to extremist outfits.
Since the early 2000s, right-wing Hindu and Christian groups have been spreading misinformation about an alleged international Jihadist plot to convert women from their communities to Islam. Although they are yet to produce proof of this claim after more than two decades, their campaign has only grown. The death of Sona Eldhose case has now provided fresh momentum for the campaign in Kerala.
Basil said that what happened to his sister has shifted his perspective. “When the BJP kept making claims like forced conversions, I always thought it was communalism. But now I have come to realise there might be some truth to it,” he said.
Meanwhile, police sources said that, at this stage, the investigation does not justify invoking any provisions related to forced religious conversion. Such charges, they said, would be applied only if there is evidence that Ramees intended to exploit Sona — for instance, by using her for extremist activities — or if he had links to organisations explicitly engaged in religious conversion or to banned terrorist groups. So far, no such links have been established. Investigators added that if fresh evidence emerges during the probe, additional charges could be framed.
If you are aware of anyone facing mental health issues or feeling suicidal, please provide help. Here are some helpline numbers of suicide-prevention organisations that can offer emotional support to individuals and families.
Tamil Nadu
State health department's suicide helpline: 104
Sneha Suicide Prevention Centre - 044-24640050 (listed as the sole suicide prevention helpline in Tamil Nadu)
Andhra Pradesh
Life Suicide Prevention: 78930 78930
Roshni: 9166202000, 9127848584
Karnataka
Sahai (24-hour): 080 65000111, 080 65000222
Kerala
Maithri: 0484 2540530
Chaithram: 0484 2361161
Both are 24-hour helpline numbers.
Telangana
State government's suicide prevention (tollfree): 104
Roshni: 040 66202000, 6620200
SEVA: 09441778290, 040 27504682 (between 9 am and 7 pm
Aasara offers support to individuals and families during an emotional crisis, for those dealing with mental health issues and suicidal ideation, and to those undergoing trauma after the suicide of a loved one.
24x7 Helpline: 9820466726
Click here for working helplines across India.