A 23-year-old woman died on Tuesday after she was set ablaze by a man who attempted to rape her, the police in Karnataka’s Yadgir district have said. The accused has been identified as Ganeppa, a resident of Chowdeshwarihala village, and the police have arrested him. The incident took place in a village near Shahapur town on Monday morning. 

According to police, accused Gangeppa had been stalking the woman, who is married, for a while, forcing her to have an affair with him. Despite her rejecting his advances, he kept persisting, and police say he had assaulted her in the past as well. She did not file a police complaint, but approached the village elders, who called a meeting and warned the accused from approaching and troubling her. 

But he allegedly barged inside her house early Monday morning when her husband had gone out and attempted to rape her while she was asleep. When she woke up and resisted him, he assaulted her, poured petrol on her and set her on fire. Neighbours rushed to the spot, extinguished the flames, and shifted her to the hospital, sources said. However, the woman succumbed to her injuries.

A police official told TNM that the accused man has been arrested and booked under Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code. Speaking to reporters, Karnataka Home Minister Araga Jnanendra said that investigation is underway and ‘severe punishment’ will be given to the accused. 

“The accused has surrendered at Surpura Police Station. The police are investigating the case. Severe punishment will be given to the accused,” the Karnataka Home Minister said. 

Last month, another incident of another woman being stripped, assaulted, and sexually abused had come to light in Yadgir. The woman was waiting near Rastapura road when she was kidnapped and taken to a farm near Kanyakollur road and gangraped.

The accused had also taken a video of the woman being attacked by four to five men with sugarcane sticks after being stripped. The police arrested all accused in this case.

With IANS inputs