Following the shocking incident in which a 55-year-old man recently set ablaze a 11-year-old girl for wearing ‘objectionable’ clothes and lipstick, the Jaipur police now believe the accused could have molested or even raped the victim before setting her afire. The police have sent the victim, recuperating at the SMS Hospital with 90 per cent burns, and the accused, arrested on Friday, for medical tests to ascertain charges of rape. The police stated that the test results, expected on Monday, were decided after the victim’s statement and allegations from her parents about rape.The incident occurred on Thursday night in a locality in Lal Kothi, when the victim visited one Salim alias Ajji’s shop with her seven-year-old brother. Lal Kothi station house officer (SHO) S M Nagora said, “She and her brother are regular visitors to Salim’s shop. But according to the victim’s statement, Salim was enraged about her wearing lipstick and dressing objectionably and he dragged her to a room inside the shop, poured kerosene and set her ablaze.” He added that the girl then managed to flee from the shop while ablaze and was rescued and taken to a nearby hospital.Though the police had registered a case of attempt to murder after the incident, they added Indian Penal Code Section 354 for outraging a woman’s modesty to the list of charges on Sunday. “In an additional statement to the police, the victim stated that Salim asked her to lie down before pouring the kerosene, which we find suspicious. The girl has suffered serious injury and was unable to speak to the police in detail. However, medical tests will ascertain the charges of rape, said a senior police officer. “Most families in the area visit the same shop and we know Salim quite well. In fact, he even used to give our children free chocolates and biscuits,” the victim’s father said. However, he added that the accused’s wife died 25 years ago of burn injuries.“He could have been involved in his wife’s death as well. But this case must be investigated quickly and the accused dealt with harshly. It is unbelievable that a man we trust could have done this. He is even related to my wife’s family,” he said. Meanwhile, the police stated that the accused has lived alone since his wife died and never had any children. “Lots of children visited his shop regularly but preliminary investigations have not led us to believe he misbehaved with any other children,” Nagora said.
