MP: Minor immolates self citing rape; three held

A 14-year-old girl died of severe burn injuries on Wednesday after she immolated herself, alleging rape and harassment by three persons in Madhya Pradesh's Betul district, police said.

The police have arrested all three accused, an official said.

The Class 8 student poured kerosene and immolated herself at her home in Devgaon village on Tuesday evening and died while undergoing treatment at a hospital in Nagpur, additional superintendent of police (ASP) Shraddha Joshi said.

The girl suffered 90 per cent burns and was first taken to the district hospital, from where she was referred to a hospital in Maharashtra's Nagpur city, Joshi said.

In her statement, the victim had named three persons accusing them of raping and harassing her, the senior official said.

On the basis of girl's statement, the police arrested Sandeep Hisare (23) and Nitesh Nagle (21), while another accused identified as Ajay was nabbed from Kamla Nagar area of Bhopal, Joshi said.

The trio has been booked under section 376D (gang rape) and other relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, she said.

The victim has also left a note in which she has held Hisare responsible for her death, the official said, adding that further probe is underway.