Nagpur: The 25-year-old woman lecturer who was set ablaze by a stalker in Maharashtra’s Wardha district last week died while undergoing treatment at a hospital here Monday morning, officials said.
Ankita Pisudde, resident of Hinganghat town in Wardha, had been critical after sustaining 35 to 40 per cent ‘grade III’ burns February 3 when she was set afire allegedly by one Vikesh Nagrale (27) while she was on way to her college, the officials informed.
Pisudde was undergoing treatment at the ‘Orange City Hospital & Research Centre’ here. Doctors however, declared her dead Monday 6at .55am, Hinganghat’s police inspector Satyaveer Bandiwar said.
Later, some angry locals threw stones to block a road in Hinganghat when an ambulance carrying the woman’s body was about half-a-kilometre away from the victim’s native village Daroda, but the police brought the situation under control.
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray expressed grief over the woman’s death and said ‘the case would be heard in a fast track court’. He urged Hinganghat residents to maintain peace.
Thackeray said his government will study the ‘Disha Act’, enacted recently by the Andhra Pradesh government, and try to make laws stricter to prevent such incidents in future.
The ‘Disha Act’ mandates completion of investigation into cases of sexual offences within seven working days from the time of record and trial within 14 working days from the date of filing the chargesheet.
Ankita’s distraught father said he hoped his daughter would get speedy justice and it would not be delayed like the Nirbhaya gangrape case.
“The accused should also go through the pain that my daughter went through in these seven days. We want justice as soon as possible and it should not be delayed as in the Nirbhaya case,” he told reporters outside the hospital.
State Home Minister Anil Deshmukh also said the case trial would be held in a fast track court and a family member of the victim would be given a government job.
The woman sustained deep burn injuries on scalp, face, right upper limb, left hand, upper back, neck and eyes along with severe inhalational injuries, the hospital said in a medical bulletin. She died of ‘septicemic shock’ after suffering from deep dermal burns along with respiratory distress and related complications, it said.
“Around 6.30 am, she had bradycardia and inspite of prolonged cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the patient could not be revived and was declared dead at 6.55 am,” the bulletin stated.
Deshmukh talking to reporters in Mumbai, said he spoke to the victim’s relatives and assured them that the case would be fast-tracked.
“Efforts were made to save the victim, but we are sorry she could not survive. The state government stands with the victim’s family. A government job and all other assistance will be provided to the victim’s family,” Deshmuk tweeted later in the day.
According to the victim’s relatives, Nagrale, who was arrested within hours of the incident February 3, had been harassing her for quite some time.
Nagrale and the woman were friends till two years ago when she severed ties with him due to his ‘irrational behaviour’, the police earlier said.
PTI