An 18-year-old woman from Fatehpur, who was allegedly raped and set ablaze, breathed her last on December 19, in a Kanpur hospital after battling for life for almost 120 hours.

The victim had suffered 90 per cent burns and had multiple organ failure. 

“She had suffered from organ failure including lungs and kidneys following serious injuries and we tried to resuscitate her, but she could not survive and died,” Head of the department (surgery) at the hospital, Sanjay Kala said.

The body has now been sent for post-mortem.

She had been put on ventilator support since December 17 after multi-organ dysfunction. She was having problems while breathing too, the doctors said.

“She was almost unconscious since Wednesday evening and took her last breath at around 6:30 am,” he said.

The officials said that she was in a critical condition from the time she was admitted. Although several doctors tried to keep her stable, her condition deteriorated.

The victim’s family filed an FIR last week against the girl’s uncle who had allegedly raped her. The police tracked him down and arrested him for rape and attempt to murder. 

Additional Director General of Police (Allahabad zone) Sujeet Pandey had earlier said it was the woman who allegedly set herself ablaze when a ‘panchayat’ did not approve of her relationship with a distant relative.

With this death, the death toll of rape victims in Uttar Pradesh has reached five.

On December 5, a rape survivor from Unnao was set ablaze by five people, including two accused of raping her. They were arrested the same day. The woman later died during treatment in a Delhi hospital.

Also Read: Woman Sets Herself On Fire Outside Police Station After Rape-Accused Gets Bail