Malvani man poured kerosene on his wife, set her ablaze, doused the fire after she had incurred 22 per cent burn injuries and kept her captive in the house without proper medical treatment for 7 days

Anjum, who is unable to lie on her back is living with her mother, brother and her sister-in-law (right). Pic/ Sameer Abedi

He poured kerosene on her, set her ablaze, doused the fire after she had incurred 22 per cent burn injuries and kept her captive in the house without proper medical treatment for seven days. The barbaric act took place on September 1 at Ambojwadi, Azad Nagar. The incident came to light when family members reached out to cops to arrest Babu Khan, 28, for the alleged assault on his wife, Anjum Babu Khan, 27.

The Malvani police filed an FIR yesterday under relevant sections of the IPC, and Babu Khan was arrested.

The assault

Speaking to mid-day, Anjum said, "It wasn’t the first time my husband assaulted me. He has been threatening or thrashing me every day for the last three months. On September 1, I blurted that I wished I were dead, which triggered his anger. After the incident, a local doctor would come home every day and give me painkillers and sleeping pills."

Anjum said Babu also assaulted their children – a boy, 7, and a girl, 4. "Once, he tried to strangle me with my dupatta. He keeps telling me that he doesn’t want to be with me, he wants to remarry," she said.

Babu Khan, the accused

Anjum’s neighbours alerted her brother, Mohammed Abdul Khalid Hashmi. He said, "I found her lying on her stomach because her back was badly burnt. The next day, after he misbehaved with my wife and sisters, I reached their home, took Anjum and went to the cops."

Police inaction

Khalid has alleged that the police took almost four days to file a case. "The cops visited the hospital and saw Anjum’s condition, but, for some reason, they were not filing an FIR against Babu. An officer informed me yesterday that they have filed a case and arrested Babu."

Anjum Khan

Not enough to report?

Although Anjum had 22 per cent burn injuries, senior police inspector Deepak Phatangare of Malvani police station, said, "Anjum had minor injuries – her medical report states she suffered only 22 per cent burns. But, we have arrested her husband."