Set afire after failed rape bid, girl dies in hospital

KANPUR: A 16-year-old girl, who was allegedly set ablaze by a youth for resisting rape bid in Kannauj, on Tuesday, succumbed to her injuries at Lala Lajpat Rai Hospital in the city on Wednesday.
The incident took place in an area where sexual attacks on women have become almost a daily affair. The Talagram police have already booked Sarman Singh Kannaujia over the attack that took place on the evening of December 2, when the victim was alone in the house.Her parents were working in nearby fields. Victim’s family told the cops that the accused had been repeatedly harassing their daughter. He had tried to rape the girl on November 29 too, but had to escape after she raised the alarm. Social stigma attached with such incidents prevented victim’s family from approaching the police. Emboldened by their move, the accused barged into their house on December 2, and dragged the victim into a back room. The girl put up a stiff resistance and raised alarm to draw neighbours’ attention, said SHO Talagram and added that this infuriated the accused, who doused the girl with kerosene and set her ablaze.
The girl was rushed to a CHC from where she was referred her to Lala Lajpat Rai Hospital in a critical condition, where she succumbed to her injuries on Wednesday night, the officer said.
"The accused is on the run. He has been booked under Section 302 of the IPC. Several teams have been constituted to nab him," said, additional SP Subhash Singh Shakya.
The officer said that the accused was a neighbour of the victim. "It has come up during preliminary investigation that Sarman harassed her several times in the recent past," said a police officer.