The father of a medical student who was murdered by her husband was left devastated after learning he could serve as little as 16 years in prison for the horrific crime. , dreaming of becoming a surgeon one day.

But after meeting her first boyfriend Meraj Zafar in 2021, she found herself trapped in an . Arnima was 19 and pregnant when Zafar choked or smothered her to death in their North Parramatta flat after she tried to leave their violent marriage in January 2022.

A pathologist could not determine precisely how Arnima died because Zafar had acid in an attempt to dissolve her remains. The murderer was sentenced to just 21 years and six months in prison in December, though he could serve as little as 16 years.

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Arnima's father Abu Hayat previously revealed the aggressive encounter he had with his daughter's new partner after he asked for his permission to marry her in May 2021. Abu was reluctant and asked to meet his parents before giving his permission. Zafar was said to be furious and an argument ensued.

Later he is said to have phoned Abu multiple times, asking: "Are you [a] man or a lady? Why can’t you make a decision?" Zafar and Arnima got married on October 13, 2021 in a private Islamic ceremony not attended by either of their families.

Arnima was an 18-year-old medical science student at the University of Western Sydney and had never previously had a boyfriend when she met Zafar. He was a 20-year-old tradie with a history of illicit drug use and heavy drinking.

In the months leading up to their wedding, Arnima had tolds friends that Zafar had been violent towards her. The aggressive phone calls towards her father also escalated during this time, with Abu calling the police on October 8, 2021 after Zafar threatened to hill him.

After the phone call, Arnima collected her belongings from her parents' home and had no further contact with them before she was murdered. "I know this guy [was] very bad," Abu told the . "But after marriage I don't even know where they are living."

As a young girl, Arnima had quickly fitted into her new life in , where her parents established a thriving butcher’s shop. She became an Australian citizen and perfected her English as she studied hard with big ambitions for the future.

Arnima’s parents were full of pride when she secured a place studying medicine at Western Sydney University. They worked hard to pay the fees and she got a part-time job at a shopping centre.

But after meeting Zafar, her life began spiralling out of control. The tradie had been a high school dropout before bulking himself up at the gym.

He towered over Arnima and, right from the start of their relationship, her family were concerned about how he was trying to control her. Arnima had always been close to her family, but started to pull away under his influence.

The couple were living together in a flat in the Sydney suburb of North Parramatta where the murder would eventually take place. By January 2022, Arnima was very unhappy and pregnant.

She told friends she would have to ask permission to leave the house and he would call her a "dumb bi***". She admitted that he had once strangled her until she was unconscious after thinking she had been seen with another man.

Arnima sent him messages begging him to allow her to leave. “I just don’t want to say this to your face because I’m scared you’re going to bash me again,” she wrote. “I don’t want a son like you.”

Zafar replied, “Baby, you need to let go of the past – whatever I did was not me at all.” But Arnima confided in friends that he was jealous and controlling. She regretted the marriage and was thinking about going to the police but was scared about what Zafar might do.

On January 29, Arnima sent a text to a friend saying, “I have nobody except you,” and said she wanted to leave the marriage. The friend replied, “You have got no choice. You have to stay with him.” Arnima responded at 9.10pm, saying, “No, I hate him.” It would be the last time anyone would hear from her.

The next day, Zafar’s mother called the police to say her son had admitted to having a fight with Arnima and wasn’t sure if she was still breathing.

Officers went to the flat and discovered the gruesome scene. The bath was filled with hydrochloric acid and there was a body lying face down.

The body was so badly decomposed from the acid that the remains had to be identified through DNA. Zafar and his white work truck were missing, but he handed himself in 20 hours later.

The police pieced together the timeline and concluded Arnima had been killed just 45 minutes after sending her last message to her friend. Zafar had left the flat at 9.55pm and by then Arnima was dead.

CCTV footage from the following morning showed Zafar driving his work truck to a home improvement store, where he bought 20 litres of hydrochloric acid. He would later return to buy another 80 litres. While he denied it, it was determined that he had killed Arnima and was trying to get rid of the body.

Zafar’s internet history revealed he had searched “Can hydrochloric acid burn through skin?” several times before he bought the acid. He had also searched, “How many years do you get in Sydney for murder?”

Arnima’s parents and her eight-year-old sister were devastated. They couldn’t even see her one last time because the acid had destroyed her body. It also meant their tradition of having an open coffin at her funeral was impossible.

In December 2024, Zafar, then 23, was sentenced. Arnima’s father said he had broken their family, their future and their hearts. “I miss my daughter every day and see her face in my dreams,” he said. “He burned the face I used to kiss every night. Can you imagine someone burning your child?”

In a letter to the court, Zafar said he took full responsibility. “I don’t know how to begin to say how sorry I am for all that I have caused and all that I have affected through my actions,” he wrote. “It’s the most terrible thing to do to someone else.”

Zafar was sentenced to 21 years and six months in prison with a non-parole period of 16 years.

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