LUCKNOW: Two women were killed after a man, in what is suspected to be an act of honour killing, set his daughter on fire in the Moradabad district of Uttar Pradesh on Friday afternoon.
While the girl identified as 22-year old Gulafshan died on the spot, her sister in law, succumbed to burn injuries that she had sustained while trying to douse the flame.
The man identified as Mashruf Raza Khan was said to be upset about his daughter’s four-year-old marriage to a man identified as Sajid Ali who was also from the same village.
According to police sources, Mashruf and his sons along with some of Gulafshan’s relatives barged into the house where she and Saijd Ali were staying. Mashruf and his sons then manhandled Gulafshan and tied her to a cot after which they sprinkled kerosene on her and set her on fire. The accused then fled the scene.
“Shabenoor was admitted to the district hospital where she succumbed,” said superintendent of police (city) Ashish Srivastav.
On reaching the spot, the police took victim’s body into custody and sent it for post-mortem examination.
“On the basis of preliminary evidence and the statements given by the families, it seems to be a case of honour killing,” said Srivastav.
A source close to the family claimed that Mashruf was unable to come to terms with his daughter’s marriage to Sajid and was bent on finding an opportunity.
Meanwhile, Sajid’s father registered an FIR under 302(murder) and other sections of the Indian Penal Code against 11 people including Mashruf Raza Khan.
One of the accused, Gulafshan’s cousin Ashraf, was arrested on Friday night. Police is on the lookout for others.
At the time of the incident, Gulafshan’s two-year-old son was also present at the house. However, attackers spared the child, the police said.
According to family sources, Sajid’s sister Shabenoor got married ten months ago after which Gulafshan and Sajid started living in their native village of Awnla Ghat.
Five days ago, Nashik sessions court had handed a death sentence to a man convicted of ‘honour killing’ his 18-year-old pregnant daughter for having married outside the caste.