Indian woman dies after being set on fire by alleged stalker

Scrutiny of sexual violence in India has increased in recent years

An Indian college lecturer who was allegedly set on fire by a man accused of stalking her for months has died.

The woman died on Monday, a week after she was attacked on her way to work at a college in central Maharashtra state.

The victim had sustained 40% burns to her body, with deep injuries on her scalp, limbs, back and face.

Her alleged attacker, who has been arrested, is said to have used a stick soaked with petrol to set her alight.

Eyewitness Vijay Kukade said he stopped his bike when he heard her screams. He thought that someone had been in an accident.

"I turned my bike around to see what had happened. But instead, I saw a woman burning in the street," he told BBC Marathi.

According to the woman's family, the man had been harassing the teacher, who has not been officially named, for some time.

Several locals in the town of Hinganghat, where the crime occurred, held a march last week where they demanded the death penalty for the accused.

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The young woman was put on a ventilator on Friday, succumbing to her injuries on Monday, according to the hospital.

One of the hospital doctors told local media that her body had been handed over to the police, who will conduct a post mortem report.

The state's home minister has expressed his condolences to the family.

"This is an incredibly tragic incident and we are all very sad. We did everything we could to save her and I want the family to know that the state government is behind them," Anil Deshmukh told reporters on Monday.

Another incident of stalking was reported in the capital, Delhi, last week. A police inspector is accused of shooting dead his female colleague on Friday. An initial investigation alleged that he had been stalking her ever since she ended their relationship eight months ago.