Lovers set ablaze after being hacked to death in Uttar Pradesh

In a suspected case of honour killing, two lovers were allegedly hacked to death and their bodies burnt in Banda district in Uttar Pradesh's Bundelkhand region, about 150 kilometres from here.

The lovers, who suffered serious injuries, died later in the hospital.

According to the police sources here, Arti Kumari, a resident of Mataundh area and Ramesh (both names changed) had been having an affair for the past two years.

The youth sneaked into his lover's house on Wednesday evening, when her brother and other members of the family had gone to work in the fields.

Arti's brother, however, was informed by some village resident about Ramesh's presence in his house and he came rushing in. Arti's brother hit the couple with an axe several times and then set them ablaze before bolting the door of the room from outside.

The neighbours, who reached their after seeing flames coming out of the room, rushed the coupe to the district hospital. The youth was declared brought dead while the girl died a little later.

Police said that four persons, all members of the girl's family, were arrested in this connection. The main culprit, however, was absconding and a hunt had been launched to nab him, police said. Police said that it was a case of honour killing.

Earlier also, many lovers were killed for the sake of family honour in different parts in the state, especially in the 'Jat'-dominated western UP region.