Woman burnt to death in alleged suicide – family blames in-laws

According to initial report, Shaheen Bibi was upset with her husband’s behavior for a long time, and on Monday she sprinkled petrol on herself and set on fire.

Police said the woman’s body was burnt around 60 percent and she died of burn wounds. However, woman’s family claimed that her in-laws set her ablaze.

Read more: First case registered under Protection of Women Against Violence law

The victim’s husband says his wife committed suicide, and rubbished reports of any foul play. Police have registered a case and began further investigation into the case.

The Women’s Protection Act, passed by Punjab Assembly on March 3, 2016 that gives unprecedented legal protection to women from domestic, psychological and sexual violence. It also calls for the creation of a toll-free abuse reporting hot line and the establishment of women’s shelters.

In 2013, more than 5,800 cases of violence against women were reported in Punjab alone, the province where Wednesday’s law was passed, according to the Aurat Foundation, a women’s rights advocacy group.

Those cases represented 74 percent of the national total that year, the latest for which data is available.