Jamtara (Jharkhand): A 25-year-old woman and her eight-month-old son died after she set herself and the child on fire in Jharkhand's Jamtara district, police said on Wednesday.
The incident took place in Suriyapani village in Nala police station area on Tuesday, a police officer said.
Preliminary investigation has found that the woman was depressed as her child was suffering from an illness for the last three months, Nala Sub-divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Manoj Kumar Jha said.
The woman, identified as Vishakhi Murmu, was staying at her parents' house with her son Vishnu as her husband Ranjeet Tudu was working elsewhere, he said.
As per Murmu's parents, she came out of the house with her son while others were asleep and poured kerosene over herself and the child and set themselves on fire, Jha said.
Her parents and other villagers heard their screams and tried to rescue them by dousing the fire and admitting them to a hospital, where they succumbed to their injuries, he said.
Murmu's husband used to regularly send money to her for sustaining themselves and for the child's treatment, the SDPO said, adding the bodies have been sent for post-mortem examination and further investigation is underway.
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PTI
