'Refused to delete photos of her': Man burned alive by ex live-in partner, her newly-wed husband in Agra

MEERUT: A 35-year-old autorickshaw driver was allegedly burned alive by his former live-in partner, her newly-wed husband and their accomplices in Agra's Shahganj area after he refused to delete old photos and videos of them together from his phone. Police on Thursday said Chand alias Saddam, a resident of Ram Swaroop Colony near Prithvinath Phatak in Agra, was returning home after dropping passengers when he was stopped in Dauretha area on Feb 27. The accused allegedly dragged him out of his autorickshaw near Bilasganj, took him to a secluded spot, poured petrol on him and set him ablaze. Hearing his screams, residents rushed to help. He was initially admitted to SN Medical College and later shifted to a private hospital, where he died on Wednesday night.

Family members alleged that the woman, who had been living with Chand for nearly two years after her husband's death, recently married her brother-in-law, Allee Ahmed, 33, and had been putting pressure on Chand to delete old photos and videos of them together. On Thursday, family members placed Chand's body on the road at Prithvinath Phatak and blocked traffic for nearly an hour, demanding action against the accused.

The protest was called off only after police assured strict action against the alleged perpetrators. A case against the woman, Shabnam, and her husband had already been registered under BNS section 124 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt by use of acid, etc), and a team was pressed to arrest them. Further BNS sections will be added to the FIR after receiving the postmortem report, said police. ACP (Lohamandi) Gaurav Singh said further legal action is being taken based on evidence, including CCTV footage.