Lucknow: A rape survivor from Unnao was battling for life on Thursday after five men, including two of the accused who are out on bail, allegedly set her on fire while she was on her way to court, police said.
All the five men have been arrested.
The woman — who was raped in December last year — received 60-70 per cent burn injuries and is being treated in a government hospital in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police O P Singh said.
The woman, who survived the sexual assault a year ago, said in her statement that she was on her way from her village in Unnao district to Rae Bareli where the trial is going on when she was attacked and set ablaze early on Thursday morning.
In a chilling recap of the incident, she said in her statement to Sub Divisional Magistrate Dayashankar Pathak that she was going to Rae Bareli to pursue her case. When she reached the Gaura turn, near her home, Harishankar Trivedi, Ram Kishore Trivedi, Umesh Bajpai, Shivam Trivedi and Shubham Trivedi attacked her and set her afire.
She alleged that Shivam and Shubham Trivedi had abducted and raped her in December 2018. However, the FIR was registered in March.
Aflame, she ran for a while before eyewitnesses saw her and informed police, which sent her to the Community Health Centre from where she was sent to the district hospital before being referred to Lucknow, police said.
The Samajwadi Party and the Congress attacked the ruling Yogi Adityanath government over the incident.
“Yesterday the home minister of the country and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister lied that law and order in Uttar Pradesh has become good. Seeing such incidents everyday leads to anger…,” Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said, adding that BJP leaders should now stop false propaganda.
She also tagged a news report of the incident.
The SP condemned the BJP government and demanded the resignation of the DGP.
“The attempt to set ablaze the rape victim is result of prevailing ‘jungleraj’ in UP. CM should be ashamed and DGP should resign. There should be no drama but strict action should be taken and best treatment and security should be provided to the victim,” the party said in a tweet in Hindi.
A similar case was recently reported from Sambhal district of the state. The woman later succumbed in a hospital in Delhi.
Unnao has been in the spotlight after a young woman alleged that she had been raped in 2017, when she was 17 years old. The main accused in the case is former BJP MLA Kuldeep Sengar.
Also read: Hyderabad horror: How can we bring national attention to rape cases outside big cities?
Shri Ajay Bisht became CM of UP in March 2017. Difficult to recall a single achievement that would justify such an onerous responsibility having been placed on his no doubt sturdy shoulders.