Valsad district: On way to court for dowry case hearing, woman attacked with acid

The woman is reportedly out of danger, police said.

Sachi married Amol Bokade, a resident of Umbergaon taluka in Valsad district, in 2013. She walked out of her in-law’s place in 2015 alleging “regular mental and physical torture by her husband and his parents”, police said. She went back to her parents in Madhya Pradesh and lodged a complaint of dowry and harassment against her in-laws with local police in Khargone district in 2015. The case was transferred to Umbergaon police station in Valsad after a few days. Following this, the Umber-gaon police arrested the accused persons, who later got bail.

Sachi came down to Gujarat with her brother from Madhya Pradesh on Thursday for the case hearing. As the Umbergaon beach was close to the court, she went directly there from the railway station to freshen up at a public washroom before heading to the court, police added.

The complainant told the police that when she stepped out of the washroom, two bike-borne youths came near her and threatened her to withdraw the case against Bokade family, while the pillion rider threw acid on her. The attackers were wearing helmets.

Sachi’s brother who was at a little distance from her immediately took her to a government hospital for treatment.

Umbergaon police took her statements and lodged an offence under IPC section 326 (B), 114 against two unknown youths.

Umbergaon police sub-inspector J J Dabhi said, “We have registered an offence. In her complaint, she had mentioned that the youths had threatened her to withdraw her complaint. We are collecting CCTV footage from nearby shops to identify the accused. The condition of the victim is stable. The acid fell on her chest, but she is stable.”