Russian woman acid attack: Accused held, victim shifted to

The accused in an alleged acid attack on a Russian national in Nand Nagar colony area, has been arrested here even as the victim was shifted to Delhi for better treatment.
Siddharth Srivastava, who had fled to Allahabad after committing the crime, was nabbed yesterday when he came back to visit the 23-year-old victim in the hospital here, Varanasi SSP, Akash Kulhary said.
Addressing a press conference here today, Kulhary clarified that the victim had dual citizenship of Russia and Bulgaria and was living with the accused as his friend, and not as a paying guest.
A guilt-ridden Srivastav who was also present at the conference said, "I really feel shameful for my act, I don't know whether I would ever be able to meet her in my life.

"I threw acid on her in a fit of rage as she was not willing to talk to me. I was disappointed with her decision to go back to her nation. Though she had turned down my marriage proposal, I was fine with it, but I did not want her to go away," he said.
Meanwhile, the victim, who suffered 46 per cent burn injuries on her face and body in the attack, has been shifted to New Delhi for better treatment.

"The foreign national, who was undergoing treatment at Sir Sunder Lal Hospital of BHU,has been shifted by an air ambulance from Varanasi airport this evening toSafdarjang Hospital in Delhi," Varanasi District Magistrate Rajmani Yadav told PTI.

He said her health condition is stated to be stable.
The District Magistrate also said Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav sanctioned Rs 5 lakh from the CM Relief Fund for the woman's treatment, adding that the state government was ready to support her financially.
The woman was shifted after consultations between the Russian Embassy, the state government and the Centre to provide her better medical care, said Yadav.