Hyderabad, June 19: Alarmed over the increasing acid attacks on women, the Andhra Pradesh government is mulling special legislation to deal with such crimes and ensure stringent punishment to the guilty.
A day after two women were injured in acid attacks, Home Minister P.Sabita Indra Reddy told reporters today that she would hold talks with the central home minister in this regard.
“A decision will be taken after due consultations with the union home ministry,” she said while underlining the need for special legislation to deal with such crimes.
Reddy, the first woman home minister in the state’s history, was talking to reporters after receiving memorandums from various women’s groups seeking stern action against those responsible for acid attacks.
The home minister directed the Guntur district authorities to take immediate steps to arrest those involved in acid attacks on women.
Two married women were injured when jilted lovers poured acid on them in two different incidents in Guntur district Thursday. In one incident, D. Lakshmi, 28, suffered serious burn injuries when her former lover Venkateshwarlu threw acid on her when she was asleep.
Police said the two were having an extramarital affair but Venkateshwarlu got angry when she stopped seeing him a few months ago.
In the other incident, another jilted lover, N. Kumar, attacked his former lover Sheikh Nabi at a hospital. A 11-year-old girl was also injured in the attack.
In December last year, an engineering student in Warangal was killed and her friend was injured when three youths attacked them with acid. That attack also was carried out by a spurned lover. He and his two friends were later shot dead in an alleged gun battle with the police.(IANS)