MP: Set On Fire Over Land Dispute Six Days Ago, Tribal Woman Dies

A financial assistance of Rs 4 lakh announced earlier for the woman and her family has been now increased to Rs 8 lakh

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New Delhi: After battling for life for six days, a tribal woman who had been allegedly set on fire over a land dispute in Madhya Pradesh's Guna district died at a hospital on Friday. The woman, who had suffered 80 per cent burn injuries, was undergoing treatment in Bhopal's government-run Hamidia Hospital.

Guna collector Frank Noble A said a charge of murder under IPC section 302 was pressed against the five arrested accused following the woman's death.

A financial assistance of Rs 4 lakh announced earlier for the woman and her family has been now increased to Rs 8 lakh, and arrangements are being made to take her body to her village, the collector added.

Officials of Bamori police station had arrested five persons a day after the incident which took place at Dhanoria village on Saturday afternoon.

Guna Superintendent of Police Pankaj Shrivastava said that as per the woman's husband Arjun Saharia's complaint, he found his wife Rampyari Bai with severe burn injuries in their field on Saturday.

She told him that Pratap Dhakad (35), Shyam Dhakad (35) and Hanumat Dhakad (25) had set her on fire, Arjun claimed in the complaint.

Avanti Bai (50) and Sudama Bai (35) were also arrested in the case subsequently.

Saharia told police that the accused had forcibly usurped the family's land, which was vacated by the local administration in May this year and handed back to him.

Apart from murder and common intention, offences under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act too have been invoked against the accused.

A purported video of the incident had surfaced on social media.

It showed the woman crying with pain as smoke surrounded her body. The person shooting the video was heard saying that she had set herself on fire, and “let us shoot a video” (as proof).