Jaahnavi Kandula was a 23-year-old master’s student at Northeastern University (Seattle). She died after being run over by a police officer on 23rd January 2023. Officer Kevin Dave was speeding by driving at 63 mph on a 25 mph road, he hit Jaahnavi whilst she was using a pedestrian crossing where she had right of way. The impact resulted in Jaahnavi being thrown 100 feet away. This police officer had his driving licence suspended in 2018 and a history of several motoring offences, including driving through a red light, unpaid fines and failing to appear in court.
On 11th September 2023, Seattle police released bodycam footage showing Officer Daniel Auderer (vice president of Seattle Police Officers Guild) laughing and making fun of the incident by saying Jaanhavi had “limited value” and hence “write a cheque for $11,000”. Auderer was called to the incident to investigate if Kevin was under the influence of intoxicants (which he was not).
With only 3 months from her graduation, Jaahnavi was studying in the USA to support her single mother back in India. Although the Justice for Jaahavi campaign was spearheaded by Hindu groups such as @hindusamata , many non-Hindu groups and celebrities have expressed outrage regarding her murder. Many of these groups have been criticised for downplaying Jaahnavi’s Hindu and Indian identity.