In a shocking incident, a 21-year-old college student from Kallakuruchi's Chinnaselam set a 28-year-old woman ablaze after she allegedly refused to have sex with him.

The accused, identified as V Elumalai, had been stalking the woman, who is married with two children, for over six months after they met in a wedding. Elumalai dropped by her place on August 31 at 7 am after her in-laws had left for farming and her kids had gone to school. Her husband resides in Singapore, and hence she was all alone in the house when the stalker decided to take advantage of the situation. When the victim refused Elumalai's advances, he poured kerosene over her and set her ablaze. However, he tried to put off the fire later and sustained burns in the process. The victim, who suffered severe burns and has been receiving treatment at a hospital, is currently in a critical condition.

The police have registered a case against the accused under sections 294 b (sings, recites, utters any obscene song, ballad or words in or near any public place), 448 (house trespass), 342 (wrongful confinement), and 307 (attempt to murder) of the IPC based on the victim's statement, according to a report from a news agency.