On Saturday, a 19-year-old in Hyderabad was on her to way to college when her maternal brother-in-law tried to set her on fire for refusing to marry him. Soaked in petrol, the teen ran back to her home before the 20-year-old man, now the accused in the case, could set her ablaze. The Malkajgiri police have booked a case and are on the lookout for the accused.

The incident took place around 9 am as the survivor was walking towards her college from her home. The accused came on a bike and threatened her to marry him and get on the bike with him. The teen repeatedly refused, after which the accused poured petrol on her in an attempt to set her on fire. She then ran from the spot towards her home and later the same day approached the Malkajgiri police station with her parents.

The police are still on the lookout for the man who had been harassing the survivor for a while to marry him. Just two weeks ago, she had complained to her parents about his behaviour after which the family had warned him to leave her alone. 

“The case is still under investigation, we are confident we will nab him soon,” said Ramesh, Sub Inspector with the Malkajgiri police station, which is investigating the case. The police have booked a case against the accused under IPC section 307 (attempt to murder), section 354 D (stalking), section 341 (wrongful restraint) and under section 326 (b) (voluntarily attempting to throw acid).

In a similar incident that took place in October 2018, 40-year-old Ibrahim, who was married with two children, set fire to Shabana Begum for refusing to be his second wife. Shabana’s sister-in-law Hazeena Begum who came to her rescue also got doused in petrol and was set on fire. Shabana had suffered 100% burns while Hazeena suffered 65% burns. Both women lost their lives. The perpetrator, who had also set himself on fire, suffered 85% burns and did not survive.