A female police officer was brutally hacked and later set on fire in broad daylight by her male colleague in Alappuzha district of Kerala on Saturday, reports Mathrubhumi.

Soumya Pushpakaran (31), a female police officer, died on the spot while Ajaz (33), the male cop sustained serious injuries and has been admitted to the Alappuzha Medical College.

This is the third incident of a woman being set ablaze in public in Kerala in the past four months.

Soumya, who was overseeing the Student Police Cadet (SPC) test in the Vallikkunnam police station area limits, was returning home on her scooter after giving secretariat assistant examination around 3.30 pm. Ajaz, in a Maruti Suzuki Celerio, followed her and hit her vehicle in the Naluvila area.

Falling down by the impact, Soumya ran for safety to a nearby home, Ajaz chased her with a machete and hacked her several times. As the locals gathered upon hearing her cries, a frightened Ajaz poured her with petrol and set her on fire. Soumya died on the spot while Ajaz reportedly sustained minor injuries.

The locals promptly caught Ajaz and handed him over to the police. Ajaz is an officer with the traffic police station in Aluva in Ernakulam district. The motive behind the brutality is yet to be ascertained, said the police.

Soumya had been working at the station for a little over years and was well respected for her nice behaviour and conduct. She is survived by her husband, who works in the Gulf, and three children, eldest of whom is just three years old. Ajas is unmarried and was on leave since 9 June.

This incident comes just two months after a 21-year-old woman was burnt alive in Thrissur in April. The victim, an engineering student at the Axis Engineering College in Kodakara, was at her house when the accused Nidheesh barged in, set her on fire and tried to escape.

In March, Kavitha Vijaykumar, a 20-year-old student, was set on fire by her stalker, Ajin Reji Mathew, in Pathanamthitta. She sustained 65 per cent burn injuries and passed away eight days later.