Boy set ablaze by father for delay over getting beedis dies

Hyderabad: A 10-year-old boy, who was allegedly set ablaze by his father for delay in getting beedis from a shop, died at a hospital here, police said on Thursday.

He was set on fire on the night of January 17 as his father was also angry with him for not focussing on his studies, police said.

The boy, who suffered 90 per cent burns, was shifted to a hospital in critical condition and succumbed to his injuries on Wednesday night, a police official said.

The father, an alcoholic, allegedly set him on fire at their house after pouring turpentine oil and using a burning matchstick from which he lit his beedi, police said.

He was subsequently arrested and is currently under judicial custody and lodged in a jail here, police added.