Maruti Kumar, a resident of Dumka's Bhalki village, died on Friday hours after she was set on fire by a married man named Rajesh Raut who wanted to marry her. Dumka Superintendent of Police, Amber Lakra, said the woman's statement was recorded before a magistrate in which she named Raut.
According to the local authorities, the man had entered Kumar's house and poured petrol on her when she was asleep, and then set her on fire.
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The accused and the victim had known each other since 2019.
Per the woman's dying statement, the accused threatened her to kill her in the manner in which a 19-year-old had been killed in Dumka this year.
In August, a woman named Ankita was set ablaze at 4 am inside her house by an accused identified as Shahrukh. She was a student of Class 12.
According to Aaj Tak, Raut got married in January this year but he kept pursuing Maruti.
Maruti had topped her Class 12 exams.
Per the channel, the accused had threatened Maruti earlier this week. At that time around 150 women who used to learn stitching skills at a government center with her had come out and scared Raut away.
However, on Friday, she was attacked when she had been sleeping.
"I have knowledge of such incidents...action is being taken. Perpetrators have been arrested. It's our effort to see that the government, police and administration work diligently and get the wrongdoers punished without delay," Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren was quoted as saying by the news agency ANI.
