Denied his money, techie sets himself ablaze, dies

A 35-year-old software engineer, who set himself ablaze in the course of an argument with the owner of a tutorial institute, has died of burn injuries.

Ritesh Kumar, a resident of Lal Bhadur Shastri Nagar in HAL, doused himself with petrol and struck a match. The flames engulfed him.

Ritesh worked for a company in Marathahalli, and lived with his wife Parul, son Dharsh and daughter Vidhi.

He had handed Rs. 2.5 lakh to Aditya Bajaj, owner of Aditya Tutorials in JP Nagar, seeking admission for his son at a school.

Bajaj neither got the child a seat nor returned the money. Frustrated, Ritesh carried a bottle of petrol to Aditya Tutorials on November 30.

Heated arguments ensued, and Ritesh poured the petrol on himself, telling Bajaj to set him ablaze if he couldn't return his money.

Seeking more time, Bajaj snatched the matchbox from Rithesh's hand and placed it on the table.

A desperate Ritesh picked it up and set himself on fire, police said.

Bajaj poured water on him, but Ritesh sustained severe burn injuries. In trying to rescue Ritesh, Bajaj also suffered burn injuries.

Neighbours rushed the two to Victoria Hospital, where the police obtained a statement from Bajaj.

Ritesh died on December 1. His wife Parul Mahansaria then lodged a complaint with the police, who booked Bajaj for cheating and abetment to suicide.

The couple wanted their son to study in National Public School, the complaint says.

When the couple did not receive any intimation from the school even a month after they had paid Bajaj, Rithesh began demanding his money back.

Bajaj gave him Rs 1.25 lakh and sought a week's time to return the rest of the money. But he didn't keep his word.

Bajaj dodged Ritesh, saying he was in no position to return the money, police said.

Ritesh threatened to file a police complaint, but decided to try one last time to get his money back, Parul told the police.

On November 30, Ritesh met Bajaj around 8 pm. At 11 pm, Parul got a call saying her husband had been admitted to Victoria Hospital.

She rushed to the hospital and saw both Ritesh and Bajaj in the same ward.