Tribal girl set afire for resisting molestation

An 18-year-old tribal girl was set on fire in a Madhya Pradesh village for resisting attempt of molestation on Sunday night. The gruesome incident took place at Kataldana village in Betul district, about 190 km southeast of Bhopal, when the victim, Lata (18), was sitting outside her house.

An 18-year-old tribal girl was set on fire in a Madhya Pradesh village for resisting attempt of molestation on Sunday night.

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The gruesome incident took place at Kataldana village in Betul district, about 190 km southeast of Bhopal, when the victim, Lata (18), was sitting outside her house.

At around 11.30 pm, Gora Gond, a resident of the same village, tried to molest her. But when he failed, thanks to stiff resistance put by Lata, he poured kerosene and set her afire, a senior police official told Hindustan Times on conditions of anonymity as he is not authorised to speak to the media.

The victim sustained 70 per cent burn injuries and is undergoing treatment at district hospital. The accused is still evading his arrest.

This is the third incident of the kind within a month in the state.

Earlier, on March 21, a 15-year-old tribal girl of Damoh district was burnt to death by a policeman’s son when he failed to rape her. Similarly, a 17-year-old girl was set ablaze by four youths in Chhatarpur district on March 5.