Indian-Origin Woman Malaika Chitre, Friend Navam Kaul Killed by NYC Subway Train
An Indian-origin woman and her longtime friend were killed after they were struck by a New York City subway train at a Lower Manhattan station early Sunday, September 13.
The victims were identified as Malaika Chitre and Navam Kaul, both 24, residents of New Jersey and graduates of Rutgers University. They were hit by a southbound No. 4 train at the Spring Street station shortly after 3 a.m., according to police and local reports.
Police responded to a 911 call at about 3:14 a.m. after reports of two people on the subway roadbed. Emergency responders found the pair under the train and pronounced them dead at the scene, according to reports citing the New York Police Department.
What happened at the Spring Street station
The circumstances leading to the two friends being on the tracks remain unclear.
According to an incident report obtained by the New York Daily News, the train operator saw the pair on the tracks as the train entered the station and attempted to stop. The operator was unable to avoid the collision.
A video circulating online reportedly shows Chitre and Kaul sitting on the tracks shortly before the train arrived. Reports also say the footage shows Chitre interacting with Kaul in the moments before the collision.
Authorities have not publicly established why the two were on the tracks.
An MTA account cited by PEOPLE said one of the two may have fallen onto the tracks, after which the other may have gone down to help. That possibility has not been established as the definitive sequence of events.
The New York Post, citing law-enforcement sources, reported that investigators were examining whether intoxication or disorientation could have played a role. The report also said no suicide notes were found, while suicide had not been ruled out. Those possibilities remain part of an ongoing investigation and have not been established as the cause of the deaths.
Who were Malaika Chitre and Navam Kaul?
Chitre was from the Dayton section of South Brunswick, New Jersey. Kaul lived in Sayreville, New Jersey.
The two had been friends for years and graduated from Rutgers University in 2024, according to local reporting and their professional profiles.
Chitre earned a bachelor’s degree in public health from Rutgers and had been working as a quality operations specialist at Acadia Pharmaceuticals, according to the South Brunswick Patch. She had also begun pursuing a Doctor of Pharmacy degree at Temple University in August 2026.
Kaul graduated from Rutgers Business School with a finance degree and had been working as a financial data analyst at Bloomberg, the report said.
Their deaths came as both were still in the early stages of their professional careers.
Train operator tried to stop
Reports indicate the train operator attempted to brake after seeing the pair on the tracks.
AmNewYork reported that the operator activated the emergency brake but could not stop the train in time. The collision led to the evacuation of roughly 100 passengers from the train, according to the New York Daily News account cited by other outlets.
There is no indication in the reporting reviewed that the train operator was accused of wrongdoing.
Investigation remains open
The central unanswered question is why Chitre and Kaul were on the tracks in the first place.
Police are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the deaths. Reports about a possible fall, an attempt to help one another, intoxication, or suicide are possibilities being examined or reported by different sources, rather than established explanations.
For now, authorities have confirmed the basic sequence: two 24-year-old friends were on the subway roadbed at Spring Street station early Sunday, a southbound No. 4 train entered the station, and both were fatally struck.
The investigation is expected to determine how they reached the tracks and what happened in the moments immediately before the train arrived.
This story may be updated as new information becomes available.
