Bengaluru: A 19-year-old engineering student was allegedly set ablaze by his uncle in Bengaluru for being in a relationship with his daughter succumbed to injuries in Victoria hospital on Tuesday.
Shashank hailed from R.R. Nagar, was pursuing his engineering at a private college in Bengaluru. He was in a relationship with his cousin which his uncle, Manu alias Mahesh, father of the girl opposed and warned him against, many times before, said the police.
According to The Hindu, a few days ago Shashank had taken the girl, his cousin, to his house when she visited Bengaluru. When her family came to know about this, went to his house and took her away after creating a ruckus.
Being upset with him, his uncle and other six men abducted him in a Toyota Innova as he was walking home from college. They soaked him in petrol, set him on fire and later abandoned him in an open ground on saturday, Shashak alleged in his statement to police.
“I managed to roll on the ground and cover myself with mud to extinguish the flames. I contacted my relative Heera over the phone. She promptly arrived with my friends Saraswati and Kumar and they rushed me to the hospital,” he added in his statement.
Based on his statement, Kumbalgodu police booked Manu and the other six on charges of kidnapping, assault and attempt to murder.
Shashank suffered 80 percent burns due to the incident and passed away at Victoria Hospital on tuesday, Shashank’s maternal aunt Hira told Deccan Herald.
State Home Minister G Parameshwara has sought a report from the Kumbalgodu police and directed them to act quickly.
