Youth shoots father over NEET-linked academic pressure, counsellor explains impact of pent-up distress

Unresolved distress can impair a person's ability to think rationally. (Picture: Pexels)

• 21-year-old shot his father in Lucknow after NEET exam pressure
• Accused dismembered the body and hid parts in various locations
• Expert links extreme acts to chronic stress and pressure

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A gruesome incident has come to light where a 21-year-old college student shot his father dead in Lucknow. The reason? Well, Akshat Pratap, the accused, confessed to the police that he committed the act in a fit of rage, as his father, Manvendra Pratap Singh (50), was constantly pressurising him to prepare for NEET exam.

The incident reportedly happened on February 20. Following a heated exchange with his father, the accused shot him dead with a rifle. After committing the act, he brought the body down from the third floor to a vacant room on the ground floor and dismembered it. He threw some parts of the body near Sadarona village, some he hid inside a drum and some parts were recovered from the ground floor.

The incident has sparked outrage. It has also led many to wonder how certain people can act in extreme ways when they find themselves under pressure. Moneycontrol team spoke to mental health counsellor and founder of UnFix Your Feelings Aanandita Vaghani to understand her reading of the incident.

"This is a deeply tragic incident. While violence is never justified, cases like this force us to look beyond the event itself and examine the emotional ecosystem of the individual involved in it," she said.  Incidentally, the accused had lost his mother in 2018. "We don't know exactly what emotional state the accused was in when he committed the act. Also, no what matter what his reasons were, nothing warrants what he did. In my experience, I have seen that people can resort to violence when they are faced with a lot of expectations, challenging family dynamics, unresolved grief, and chronic stress," Vaghani added.

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When emotional distress goes unprocessed for years, and coping resources are limited, some people can act in extreme ways and develop dangerous tendencies too, she opined.

What happens to a person when they face academic pressure

Different people handle academic pressure in their own way. Some have a high threshold and some have a low threshold. When a person feels they're under pressure, it can impact their lifestyle, the way they think and function with others.

"A lot of people experience chronic anxiety, sleep disturbances, a feeling of inadequacy, shame, depression, emotional volatility and so on. Some people tend to internalise the belief that their future and self worth depends on a single outcome. When faced with so many emotions, a person's ability to think clearly can get impacted," Vaghani explained.

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Impact of chronic stress on decision-making 

Seemingly, the accused was under stress when he committed the violent act against his own father. "Chronic stress keeps the nervous system in a prolonged fight-or-flight state. It impairs the ability of a person to think things through and view things from a rational perspective. They become emotionally reactive and their ability to regulate their impulses also weakens," Vaghani told Moneycontrol.

Disclaimer: This article, including health and fitness advice, only provides generic information. Don’t treat it as a substitute for qualified medical opinion. Always consult a specialist for specific health diagnosis.