Pregnant woman burnt by husband

MaharashtraPune, Jan 2 : A pregnant woman was allegedly burnt to death by her husband after she quarrelled with his mother in Maharashtra's Sangli district, police said Saturday.

Twenty-year-old Sangita Shivaji Patil, who was six months pregnant, had a bitter argument Tuesday with her mother-in-law Hansa Naiku Patil, 55, at their home in Lingnur village, about 150 km from here.

The miffed mother-in-law then stormed out of her home, ignoring appeals to stay on from her husband Naiku Patil and son Shivaji, sub-inspector P. R. Sawant of Meraj police station told IANS.

The next morning, when Sangita was serving breakfast to the family, her enraged husband grabbed a bottle of kerosene, poured it on her and set her ablaze even as his horrified father looked on.

Sangita was rushed to the Sangli Civil Hospital where she died Thursday night.

Based on the victim's dying declaration and Naiku's statement, police have arrested and charged Shivaji with murder. Hansa has also been taken into custody on charges of harassing the dead woman.

The mother-in-law has been harassing the victim since she married her son two years ago, officer Sawant said.