Woman dies after being set ablaze by boyfriend

NT Correspondent

A woman was allegedly set ablaze by her boyfriend after she confronted him to marry her. A complaint has been lodged regarding the incident by her family members.

Deputy Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru (South East) Srinath M. Joshi, said the incident came to light on Tuesday when Gayathri (name changed) was shifted to a private hospital in the city after suffering severe burns.

Preliminary investigations by the police revealed that Gayathri was in a relationship with the accused for the last 4-5 years. After pursuing their education from a private engineering college in Vijayapura district, both came to Bengaluru and were employed with separate firms. However they continued their relationship and lived together in the city, police said. As per the complaint, the parents of the accused objected to the marriage as Gayathri hailed from a different caste. Following this, the accused too started avoiding Gayathri, which soured their relationship. They both used to have heated arguments. Recently Gayathri had compelled the accused to marry her.

Gayathri’s father told police that the accused took her to a remote place near Attibele on March 15 and allegedly set her ablaze after pouring petrol on her.

Following the incident, Gayathri was rushed to a private hospital, but she succumbed on Friday. Gayathri’s family members claim she had suffered more than 75% burn injuries. The body was later shifted to St John’s Hospital for post-mortem.

According to the sources, the deceased was the daughter of a sub-tahsildar of Talikoti taluk of Vijayapura district and hailed from Sindagi. Gayathri had lost her mother several years ago and was living with her father.

Electronic City police officials have taken up a case under IPC 304 and SC-ST act, regarding the incident. Efforts are on to identify the accused, police said.