Noida woman sets self on fire 2 days after harassment complaint, probe on

A 31-year-old woman was hospitalised with burn injuries on Tuesday after she set herself on fire near a police outpost in Noida, two days after lodging a complaint of harassment against two men, officials said.

The police said they had received counter-complaints against the woman as well and they have launched an inquiry into the whole episode that will be headed by Assistant Commissioner of Police (Noida 1).

Joint Commissioner (Law and Order) Love Kumar said the incident took place near the NSEZ police outpost and police personnel rushed to douse the fire and immediately took the woman to a nearby hospital for treatment.

The woman, identified as Sangeeta of Ilahabas village, under Phase 2 police station limits, was referred to the Safdarjung hospital in Delhi for further treatment of her burns, he said.

"During probe, prima facie it came to light that on February 20, she had given a complaint against two men of her village, Sumit and Neeraj, saying the they defamed her and spreads false rumours about her," the officer said.

He clarified that the woman claimed the accused defamed her, not harassed (chhed khaani) her. One of the accused, Sumit, is her brother-in-law.

"The police also got a complaint from the other side. The wife of Neeraj and some other residents of the village have also given a complaint against this woman, alleging she had taken loans from a lot of people and was not returning the money," Kumar said.

She also threatened to implicate them in false cases, he said, citing preliminary findings.

After hearing both sides on February 20, the probe was handed over to a women sub-inspector and a detailed investigation in the case was underway, he said.

"However, today, the woman tried to immolate herself near the police outpost. An inquiry into the whole episode has been handed over to ACP (Noida 1). Besides this, necessary legal action will be taken on the basis of facts that emerge during the probe," the Joint Commissioner said.