Woman dies after alleged acid attack by husband, in-laws over dowry

A woman, who was allegedly attacked with acid by her husband families over dowry in Fatullah of Narayanganj, died at the Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery in Dhaka yesterday.

Fatema, 31, wife of Arif Hossain in Lallpur area of Fatullah, died yesterday afternoon while undergoing treatment, said Shahadat Hossain, sub-inspector of Fatullah Model Police Station, today.

SI Shahadat said the victim's family alleged that she was murdered. However, it is not clear whether it was an acid attack. An investigation into this matter is underway.

Talking to this correspondent, Fatema's mother Nasima Begum claimed that her daughter's father-in-law Ali Ahmed informed them over phone yesterday afternoon that Fatema was injured after she fell in the bathroom. She died at the hospital around 3:00pm while undergoing treatment.

Nasima said they found her daughter's body in the burn unit of the hospital. When asked why the body was in the burn unit, Ali Ahmed could not give any answer, she said.

The victim's mother said two months ago, Fatema's husband demanded a dowry of Tk two lakh. "As we were not able to pay the money, the girl's husband and his family burnt her to death pouring acid on her," she claimed.

Nasima said, "We came to know that Fatema was admitted to the burn institute on March 9. Her in-laws didn't tell us anything. But they informed me about her after she died."