Bengaluru: The Bengaluru police on Saturday, December 21, arrested two men in connection with the acid attack on woman BMTC bus conductor Indira Bai.
It can be recalled that Bai (35), who hails from Tumakuru, was attacked by two bike-borne miscreants on Thursday, December 19, when she was on her way to work at around 5.30 AM. The incident occurred about 100 metres away from her residence.
Briefing the media about the case, DCP (North) Shashikumar said, “Indira Bai became the victim of an acid attack on December 19. She sustained burns on her face, neck and chest. We have registered a case under section 326A of the IPC.”
Elaborating on the Bai’s condition, he said, “There is no danger to her sight, but she has suffered 60 per cent burns to her face, her entire neck has suffered burns and they are quite severe. She has suffered 30 to 40 per cent burns on her chest.”
The DCP (North) informed that during the course of their investigations, the police found that Bai’s brother-in-law, Arun Naik and his friend Kumar were the ones who attacked her.
“Indira Bai and Arun were very close. They had a good relationship at the start but of late, she had started distancing herself from him. The accused (Arun) had warned her of her actions and asked her why she had kept him at bay. When she did not respond to him, he thought that if he ruined her beauty, she would not be able to speak to anyone else. So he attacked her with acid,” Kumar said.
According to the police, Arun and his friend Kumar both worked for the BMTC as bus conductors-cum-drivers. “The two procured a chemical capable of burning skin and clothes. We have sent the substance to the FSL team to determine what chemical they used,” Kumar added.
At first, Bai told the police that she had financial issues with a few people as she believed that that was the reason behind her attack. However, when the police informed her about the findings of their investigations, she told them that she would never have suspected Arun because they were relatives. She later became convinced that he was her attacker when the case was explained to her.
“This is a very unfortunate incident. The woman (Indira Bai) has been involved in an accident a few months back. She did not have any suspicions at the time. She thought it was only an accident and did not report the incident. We are investigating the matter to see if there is any connection between the accident and the acid attack,” he said.
In an interview with a TV channel, Indira Bai demanded that her attackers be punished for what they did to her. “They should be punished. I am suffering because of him (Arun). Don’t spare them,” she said.
Speaking about what happened between her and Arun, her attacker, she said, “He did not allow me to talk to anyone. He used to tell me that he wanted to marry me but my father cheated him and got him married to my younger sister. I thought he was joking at first and did not take him seriously. But I did not think that he would do this to me and ruin my life. He had told me many times that he would ruin my face. I used to scold him and tell him not to make such jokes. But now the cops have told me that he has confessed and told them that he attacked me because I used to scold him.”
(With inputs from ANI)
