Man sets wife, mother-in-law on fire before immolating self; dies

A 42-year-old man allegedly set his estranged wife and mother-in-law on fire before setting himself ablaze in Hajipur village under Sector 39 police jurisdiction on Wednesday morning

A 42-year-old man allegedly set his estranged wife and mother-in-law on fire before setting himself ablaze in Hajipur village under Sector 39 police jurisdiction on Wednesday morning. The man later succumbed to injuries during treatment, police said, adding that the condition of the two women is critical.

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The incident occurred around 7am, officials said.

“We heard a commotion and when we came out we saw two women and a man on fire. We immediately called the police that took all three to a hospital,” said Raju, a resident of the area.

Police identified the women were as Lakshmi (38) and her mother Kiran (65), while the man was Mohan Das, all natives of West Bengal residing in Noida.

According to the police, the couple was going through a divorce and often had arguments.

“The woman and her mother live in a rented accommodation in Hajipur. Das, who lived separately in the same village, today morning came to his wife’s place and the two had an intense argument. It seems that in a fit of rage he threw kerosene on her and lit her on fire. When the woman’s mother tried to save her, he set her also on fire. Then the man threw oil on himself too and set fire on himself,” said Rajesh S, deputy commissioner of police, zone 1.

Police said that all three were taken to the district hospital from where they were referred to the Safdarjung hospital in Delhi.

“Mohandas suffered 90% burns and died during treatment in the evening. His wife and mother-in-law are also critical,” said the DCP.

The couple has three children and police said they were reaching out to their next of kin. Police said they managed to record Das’s statement while he was being taken to the hospital and that necessary legal action will be taken.

Lakshmi and Das were living together in Noida’s Morna village earlier, but six months ago, she had moved to Hajipur. The couple had filed for a divorce four months ago, police said, adding that Das had recently rented a room near his wife’s residence.