A 19-year-old Dalit woman from a village near Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh was allegedly set on fire by the son of a man she had accused of harassment. The incident occurred on Friday, days after the woman filed a police complaint against 48-year-old Mangilal, a resident of her village, for attempting to assault her.
According to the police, the woman had filed a complaint on October 7, stating that Mangilal had attempted to force himself on her while she was alone in a field. Mangilal was arrested and jailed the same day but was released on bail on October 8. The woman’s family claimed they were threatened after his release.
On Friday, Mangilal’s son, Arjun, allegedly went to the woman’s house, poured petrol on her, and set her on fire. She managed to escape and was taken to the hospital by her family. The woman was initially treated at the district hospital before being transferred to a hospital in Indore, where she remains in critical condition with burns covering 27 per cent of her body.
Arjun has been charged with attempt to murder under Section 109 of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), the police stated.
Khandwa’s Superintendent of Police, Manoj Kumar Rai, stated, “The accused has been arrested and charged with attempted murder. We are conducting a thorough investigation, and the woman’s statement will be crucial”.
BJP leader Mukesh Tanve suggested that the woman had attempted self-immolation due to fear, but the police are treating the case as a criminal act. “A young girl from a village under our Kotwali police station attempted suicide. Four days earlier, someone had tried to violate her dignity, and while a case was filed, and action was taken, the accused was granted bail. It’s unclear what fears led her to douse herself in kerosene and set herself on fire,” he stated.
(Inputs by Jai Nagda)
