HYDERABAD: A 26-year-old woman was set ablaze by her husband in Tilak Nagar, nearly a decade after they eloped and got married.
The victim, Chityala Triveni, who worked as a helper at a hotel, died while undergoing treatment at Gandhi Hospital on Wednesday at around 4.30 am. Moments before the attack, the accused told his young son, “Your mother will die today”.
The accused, Kastala Venkatesh, a labourer, was arrested by the Nallakunta police nearly 36 hours after the incident and was sent to judicial remand on Friday.
Triveni and Venkatesh were natives of Huzur Nagar in Nalgonda district. After their marriage, they migrated to Hyderabad in search of livelihood. The couple had two children, an eight-year-old son and a six-year-old daughter.
According to the police, frequent quarrels had broken out between the couple over the past few years, during which Venkatesh abused and assaulted Triveni regularly.
The family had moved to Hyderabad from their village five years ago and had been living in a rented house in Tilak Nagar for the past year.
Police said Venkatesh harassed Triveni by repeatedly suspecting her character. On the night of December 24, he poured petrol on her and set her on fire before fleeing the house.
“When all were sleeping, Venkatesh woke his son and showed him a petrol bottle, saying that his mother would die today,” a police official said. “He later poured petrol on Triveni, set her ablaze and escaped from the scene.”
Hearing Triveni’s screams, her daughter woke up, saw her mother engulfed in flames and ran outside for help. Neighbours alerted the police, who rushed to the spot and shifted Triveni to Gandhi Hospital, where she later succumbed to her injuries while undergoing treatment.
Based on a complaint lodged by the deceased’s father, Chityala Appaiah, the Nallakunta police registered a case under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and launched an investigation.