Kerala woman dies, suspect’s sketch out

Fathima, who suffered 40 per cent burns, succumbed to her injuries at a hospital on Monday night, the police said

Kannur ( Kerala), Oct. 21: A 41- year- old woman, who suffered serious burns after she was allegedly set on fire by a man inside an empty train compartment here, has died and the police on Tuesday released the sketch of the suspect.

Fathima, who suffered 40 per cent burns, succumbed to her injuries at Kozhikode Medical College on Monday night, the police said.

Taking a serious note of the case, state home minister Ramesh Chennithala urged railway minister Sadananda Gowda to take steps for installing advanced gadgets like Global Positioning System and CCTV cameras in trains for the safety of the passengers, especially women.

Terming the incident “unfortunate,” Mr Chennithala said the probe, being conducted by the railway police, was progressing.

Railway superintendent of police V. O. Mohanan, who was entrusted with the probe, inspected the compartment where the incident occurred around 4.40 AM on Monday.

The police said a 23- yearold man suspected to be involved was absconding after the incident, reportedly a sequel to a dispute over certain cash transactions between him and Fathima. She had run out of the compartment of the Kannur-Ernakulam Executive express screaming in pain when she was noticed by others trying to board the train early on Monday.

The man had allegedly set her on fire after emptying a liquor bottle on her and escaped after committing the crime.

The victim, hailing from Kondotti in Malappuram, was rushed to a district hospital here and later moved to Kozhikode medical college hospital.