A 24-year-old woman working as a nurse at a Covid-19 care center in Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh’s Krishna district was set on fire by a stalker at her residence on Monday night, police said.
The stalker, who suffered 80 percent burn injuries while setting the woman on fire, also succumbed to her burns while undergoing treatment at the Government General Hospital in Guntur in the early hours of Tuesday.
Police Deputy Commissioner M Ramesh told the Hindustan Times that the woman had been in love with the man for the past four years, but wanted to end the relationship with him a few months ago. “However, the man had been stalking and harassing her into marrying him,” she said.
On October 5, the woman filed a complaint with the Governorpet police in Vijayawada alleging that the man continued to harass her, even though she had been despising his love. “They called him to the police station and warned him not to stalk her. After he promised not to bother her again, the woman withdrew the complaint, “said the ACP.
On Monday night, when the woman returned to her room closest to the Covid-19 care center where she worked, the stalker reappeared and argued with her for filing a police report against him.
“It was evident that he had come prepared to kill her. During the course of the discussion, he took out a bottle of gasoline that he had brought with him, poured it over it, and set it on fire. The woman grabbed him tightly so that he couldn’t escape after killing her. Hearing their screams, the neighbors ran there and separated them before putting out the fire, ”Ramesh said.
While the woman died on the spot, the stalker was seriously injured and rushed to the Guntur government hospital after initial treatment in Vijayawada. “He died in the early hours of Tuesday,” the police officer said.
The ACP said that while the police registered a murder case (Section 302 of the IPC) against the stalker initially and after his death, another case was registered under Section 174 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
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