A jilted lover poured petrol on his 42-year-old married girlfriend and set her ablaze before dousing himself with petrol and setting his body on fire in the Jabalpur town of Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday afternoon.
Both persons were rushed to a hospital, where they were admitted in serious condition with severe burn injuries.
A video of the incident also surfaced on social media.
According to sources, the incident was an outcome of the woman continuously rejecting the man’s proposals for marriage. The woman is married but she has left her husband and is presently living with her two kids at her parents’ house in Jabalpur.
According to information, the woman, Sapna Yadav, owns a flower shop in the city. The accused, Narendra Punjabi (40), an auto driver, was pestering her to marry him.
However, she had been rejecting his proposals to marry him. The man, apparently in a fit of rage, reached the woman’s shop in the Mastana Chowk area, threw petrol on her, and then ignited her body with a burning matchstick. He then poured petrol on himself and set his own body on fire.
Bystanders and other shopkeepers somehow doused the fire and rushed both individuals to a hospital for treatment. According to doctors, Sapna sustained 40 per cent burns while Narendra sustained 25 per cent burns.
Sources said that Sapna had earlier also lodged a police complaint against Narendra due to his continuous harassment.
According to the police, a case under Section 109 has been registered against Narendra Punjabi. He will be officially arrested after medical treatment.