Indian-origin woman Malaika Chitre, her friend killed in NYC subway crash: ‘Fell’ on tracks, struck by train | Hindustan Times

An Indian-origin woman and a Nepalese-origin man were killed after being struck by a subway in New York. The victims, who have been identified as Navam Kaul and Malaika Chitre, were struck by a train in Manhattan on Sunday and were identified as former students of Rutgers University.As per local reports by The New York Post and New York Daily, the duo was struck by a Number 4 train at Canal Street Station in lower Manhattan. A video of the incident went viral, which showed the two students sitting on subway tracks as the train approached.Also Read | Who were Navam Kaul and Malaika Chitre? Rutgers friends killed in NYC subway tragedy identifiedIt also remains unclear if emergency brakes were used to stop the train before it struck the duo.Drugs, suicide and more under investigationCiting police sources, the New York Post reported that investigators are looking into whether either Kaul or Chitre was impaired by drugs or alcohol.Officials have also searched for a suicide note to understand why the duo was on the tracks. While no note has been found, suicide has not been ruled out at the momentAccording to a Metropolitan Transportation Authority report on the incident, it remains unclear whether the man or woman fell onto the tracks.Despite this uncertainty, the report indicates the second victim had gotten onto the tracks to help the other up.The train operator told officials that she saw a "man and a woman sitting on the track," adding that the woman was laughing and pulling the man towards her when the train came into contact.Approximately 100 passengers were aboard at the time of the incident. They were evacuated onto the platform after the collision.On an average, 223 people were struck by trains annually over the past five years, according to MTA data.In 2025, 228 people were injured either in train strikes or from falling between cars, 89 of whom died.