Bengal News: A woman and her four-year-old son were allegedly torched alive in West Bengal's Birbhum district on Friday by some unknown men. The victims have been identified as Rumpa Bibi (30) and her younger son Ayan Sheikh (4), news agency IANS reported. The woman's husband is reportedly undergoing treatment for critical burn injuries at a local hospital. The incident is said to have taken place in Birbhum's Notungeet village.
The survivor in the family and the elder son of the couple was sleeping in another room when the incident took place. He told media persons that he woke up early Friday morning to his mother's screams. As per his account, the room in which his parents and brother were sleeping had the road-facing windows open.
"They were trapped in a fire and a strong smell of kerosene was emitting from the room. It seemed that some miscreants from outside sprinkled kerosene in the room through the open window and then had set fire," he said.
The locals rushed to the spot and evacuated the couple and their younger son and quickly shifted them to Bolpur sub-divisional hospital and then to Burdwan Medical College & Hospital, IANS said in its report. The four-year-old boy died within minutes after being shifted to the hospital and his mother succumbed shortly afterwards, the report added.
The father's condition is said to be extremely critical. Meanwhile, the entire village was tense and in panic over the horrific incident. The police have started an investigation into the matter to track whether any personal enmity was involved in the incident.
(Based on inputs from IANS)