A 28-year-old man who was thrashed and set on fire by locals in Barabanki district of Uttar Pradesh last week succumbed to his injuries on Monday, The Hindu reported. He was thrashed after he was mistaken for a thief.
Sujit Kumar, who was a Dalit, died at Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Civil Hospital in Lucknow early on Monday, Chief Medical Superintendent Ashok Kumar Singh told The Hindu. Kumar’s body has been sent for a postmortem examination, Singh said.
Kumar was walking to his in-laws’ home late on Thursday when he was chased by stray dogs near Raghopur village. To escape the dogs, he entered a house, whose occupants mistook him for a thief. They poured petrol on him and set him on fire, said Barabanki Superintendent of Police Akash Tomar.
Kumar had suffered over 40% burns along with other severe injuries by the time he was rescued, Hindustan Times reported. The police rescued him and took him first to a local hospital and then to Lucknow on Saturday.
The police have arrested five persons for the assault, according to Hindustan Times. They have been charged with murder. An earlier IANS report said that the police had also filed a case against Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
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