Bengaluru Teen Suffers Eye Damage After Acid Attack By Stalker

A 17-year-old girl in Karnataka suffered serious burn injuries after acid was thrown at her by a man for refusing his advances. The 22-year-old man, who works as a mechanic, has been arrested.

The girl is out of danger but is reported to have lost 20-25 per cent of her vision, doctors treating her told NDTV.

The accused, who has been identified as Sumanth, had been stalking the girl for a few months. On Friday, he invited the girl to meet him near a bypass road in Kanakapura. The girl went to meet him along with her brother. It was there that the accused, in a fit of rage, threw the acid and fled the spot.

The girl suffered severe burn injuries on the left side of her eye and her face.

Sumanth, who is a resident of Kurupete, has been arrested and sent to 7-day police custody. He has been charged under IPC section of 326 a (voluantarily causing hurt by use of acid) and POCSO ACT under section 12.  

"The victim has lost 20-25 per cent of her vision. She is stable otherwise. We have to wait and watch. Only over time with treatment will we able to assess the situation of her vision," a doctor treating the girl said.

In the last budget, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai announced Rs 10,000 as compensation to acid attack victims. 

The Supreme Court had in 2013 banned over-the-counter sale of acid at retail outlets following an increase in the number of acid attacks. But several activists, pointing to the rise in acid attacks, claim that the ban exists only on paper.

In December, Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati Maliwal had said that "acid is as easy to get as vegetables".