A horrific case of dowry harassment and attempted murder has come to light in Bengaluru on Saturday, where a 25-year-old paan shop owner allegedly porued petrol over his 20-year-old wife and set her on fire over dowry harassment. The incident occurred at TC Palya in the Ramamurthy Nagar Police Station limits on Tuesday evening. The police arrested Suraj Singh and his father Lavaneesh Singh on Saturday at around 11.30 am in connection with the case.
Investigating officers said that Suraj and his father Lavaneesh had allegedly been harassing the woman since September 23 for a dowry of Rs 20 lakh. “The couple was having a lot of fights every day since then and on October 6 the couple had a huge fight in the morning,” Ramamurthy Nagar police said.
In her statement to the police, the woman claimed that Suraj Singh and Lavaneesh allegedly demanded that she bring in dowry of Rs 20 lakh or leave the house. The woman, who refused to ask her parents for money, fought with her husband and in-laws. “In her complaint, she said that she cooked food and went upstairs and became unconscious. She woke up when her husband set her on fire,” the police added. The woman began screaming and ran outside her house while her lower body was on fire. Her neighbours rushed to help her and doused the flames. Police said that she became unconscious and was rushed to the Balaji Nursing Home. She has suffered third degree burns on her lower body and torso.
“She said that her husband set her on fire and escaped. The doctors at Balaji Nursing Home advised her not to register a case but she was adamant. When we got the information from the neighbours, we went to the nursing home and ensured that the medico-legal case was registered,” the police said.
The police have registered an FIR under sections 498A (dowry harassment), 307 (attempted murder, 506 (criminal intimidation) and 34 (common intention) against Suraj and Lavaneesh Singh. The two men, who had absconded since the incident on Tuesday evening, were arrested on Saturday.
“The woman’s family members gave a complaint and we registered an FIR. Right now, we are investigating the incident and also why the doctors did not register a medico-legal case. We are also checking to see if the accused laced her food with substance to render her unconscious. A blood sample has been sent to the FSL,” the police added.