Nikki was killed for dowry in Greater Noida, allegedly set on fire by husband Vipin Bhati and his family. Police arrested Vipin as crowds demanded justice.
A haunting video shows a woman engulfed in flames limping down a staircase just hours before she died on her way to a Delhi hospital on Thursday. Her young son witnessed the horror when she was tortured and set on fire by his father and his grandmother.
“They first put something on mumma. Then they slapped her before setting her on fire using a lighter,” said the boy, fighting back tears.
He nodded when someone asked him if his father killed her.
The deceased, identified as Nikki, was killed for dowry, nine years after she married Vipin Bhati, a resident of Greater Noida’s Sirsa.
Her elder sister, Kanchan — also married into the same family — alleged that Nikki was set ablaze before her eyes after failing to meet a demand of Rs 36 lakh in dowry. She further said she too was assaulted by her in-laws over dowry.
“We were being tortured, our in-laws would tell us they did not get this or that during the wedding. They asked us to get Rs 36 lakh from our home. I was also assaulted between 1.30 am and 4 am on Thursday. They told me, ‘We have got dowry for one, what about the other? You are better off dead. We will marry again,” NDTV quoted Kanchan as saying.
She said that she tried to save Nikki but could not. “I want them to suffer the way they made my sister suffer,” she said.
One video shows the woman’s husband and mother-in-law dragging her by the hair and beating her, while another captures her sitting on the floor with grievous burn injuries.
She was taken to Fortis Hospital with the help of her neighbours. She was referred to Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi. But she died on the way.
