Girl dies after being set on fire by spurned lover in Secunderabad's Lalaguda area; one youth arrested

A girl, who was set on fire in full public view by two youth in Secunderabad on Wednesday evening, has succumbed to her wounds, police said. [caption id=“attachment_4270981” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. PTI[/caption] According to IANS, the incident occurred in Lalaguda area of the city on Wednesday evening, when the 23-year-old girl was returning home from work. The girl, Sandhya Rani, sustained 80 percent burns and was rushed to the government-run Gandhi Hospital, said a report on  NDTV. However, she succumbed to her burns and died on Friday morning. Sandhya had been working in a commercial establishment for about a year. The attacker is suspected to be a jilted lover. Quoting eye-witnesses, the police said Sandhya was returning home when the youth, riding a motorcycle, met her on a road. They spoke for about 10 minutes. Following a heated argument, the attackers sprinkled petrol on her and set her on fire. Before passers-by could raise an alarm, they managed to escape. Following a complaint by the girl’s brother, the police picked up one youngster, who reportedly admitted to having resorted to the ghastly crime after the girl spurned his advances. The NDTV report identified the youth as Karthik, a former colleague of Sandhya’s. “Investigations have revealed that Karthik had been chasing and harassing Sandhya for months. He has reportedly told the police that she didn’t reciprocate his feelings,” it added. Speaking to PTI, Secunderabad, Deputy Commissioner of Police (north zone) B Sumathi said, “She passed away this morning. We are now altering the case sections also.” The police had earlier registered a case under IPC section 307 (attempt to murder). With inputs from agencies