Two minors — a boy and a girl — and their mother survived an acid attack in Assam's Hajo with severe burn injuries. The incident occurred on Tuesday while they were asleep at night, with neighbours suspecting it was a retaliation to the girl rejecting romantic advances.
Malika Khatun, the wife of Joynal Ali, visited her parents' home at Khopani Kuchi under the Hajo block of the Kamrup rural district on Monday. The acid attack took place the next day, while she was asleep with her son and daughter. The assailants found a window open next to their bed and threw acid on them.
The children, aged 14 years and seven years, respectively, along with their mother sustained severe burn injuries as a result of the acid attack. Immediately after the incident, they were rushed to Bishnuram Medhi Community Health Centre in Hajo with the help of local police. However, they were referred to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) in Guwahati for improved treatment.
As per reports, the acid attack survivors are residents of Hablakha village in Hajo. Immediately after the incident, locals raised suspicions that the attack was in retaliation to the minor girl rejecting the advances of an unidentified man. A neighbour mentioned that was pestered by an the unnamed individual who repeatedly forwarded romantic advances at her, and also threatened her several times in the past.
"When we arrived after hearing screams, we saw two youths running away from the scene. We don't know much, but we think the minor girl was the target. They are not from our village. We have heard that the girl was being troubled by a youth from their village. This was also one of the reason the family had come here. We have informed the police. The culprit must be caught at the earliest," said a neighbour.
