Bhubaneswar: A teenage girl who was set ablaze allegedly by her male classmate after she spurned his advances succumbed to her burn injuries at a hospital in Cuttack early on Monday.
The 17-year-old girl was a diploma engineering student at a private college at Semiliguda in the southern Koraput district.
The accused, Gopinath Khara, aged about 18, had allegedly entered her house on May 31 and poured petrol on the girl before setting her ablaze, according to an FIR registered after the incident.
Khara fled the spot after ensuring the girl was engulfed in flames, said a police officer in Semiliguda.
The girl was first rushed to Koraput district hospital, where doctors treating her said she had suffered over 50% burn injuries.
She was shifted to MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Berhampur and then, as her condition deteriorated, was brought to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack, Odisha’s largest government-run multispecialty hospital. She passed away around 3am, according to the hospital authorities.
“The upper half of the victim was badly burnt and her vital organs had suffered deep injuries. All efforts to save her failed,” said one of the doctors treating her for the last two days.
Police had managed to secure the girl’s statement, in which she named Khara and said that he had set her on fire because she had been rejecting his advances for some time.
A suo moto FIR was registered by police based on her statement.
Khara, a resident of Nandapur, surrendered to police after hiding for three days. He was taken into custody and moved to jail after preliminary interrogation, said a police officer.
Meanwhile, the girl’s relatives have brought negligence charges against the authorities of the three hospitals.
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