Police identified the accused as Jiwan BK, 20, from Ramechhap who premeditated the attack in revenge “after Sangita Magar walked out of his life and insulted his family members”.

Metropolitan Police Commissioner’s Office, Ranipokhari, made BK public a press conference on Friday. Additional Inspector General of Police Bigyan Sharma, chief of the office, said BK had tried to take revenge on Sangita and her family.

BK, wearing an orange hoody, had entered A-Plus Tuition Centre in Jhochhen at around 6am where three girls were waiting for their class to begin on February 22. He took out a bottle and poured acid indiscriminately over the girls before making a quick escape.

A committee formed in the wake of the incident under Superintendent of Police Mira Chaudhary had caught BK. The culprit was a former tenant at the same house rented by the Magar family.

In his statement to police, BK said he had fallen in love with Sangita when he tutored her. Her brother Santosh allegedly sensed about their relationship and started blackmailing BK. Santosh, who had got into drugs, reportedly began asking for money time and again.

“When BK stopped relenting to his demands, Santosh tipped his parents about the relationship,” said SP Chaudhary. “In response, the parents had a bitter altercation and BK claims that Sangita’s father even manhandled his father.”

This seems to be the primary reason for BK to carry out the attack, SP Chaudhary said. The lovelorn BK began exploring ways to take vengeance for the discredit that the act had brought to his family. He is said to have concluded that only by inflicting harm on Sangita would he be pacified.

Before BK settled for an acid-attack, police said, he carried metal rods for days and followed Sangita.

As days passed by, in April last year, BK decided to try his luck in the Indian Army and went to Sikkim where he stayed for a month.

However, after he lost more than Rs50,000 to a middleman, BK had been lying to his parents about his whereabouts. He would tell them that he was in Gangtok, Sikkim, and his recruitment to the Indian Army was in the process. BK had rented a room in Tokha when he began plotting an attack.

“BK had been following Sangita and her brother on a regular basis intending to harm them,” said SP Chaudhary.

Failing in many of his tactics, BK, inspired by Hindi serials, decided to use acid. He once bought the corrosive agent at New Road but the plastic container he kept it in melted.

On the day of the incident in February, BK got off a vehicle in Jamal and made his way towards Basantapur. “Although he knew Sangita was taking tuition classes, he did not know where. After searching for a while, he figured out the centre and planned to splash the acid when another student entered,” police said. “After a while, he took out the bottle and threw the acid onto Sangita’s face.” Right after the incident, BK fled to India on March 4. He returned on March 13. He was caught from his rented room in Tokha. Police also found press clippings about the attack from his room. AIG Sharma said they will book BK on the charge of attempted murder.

Sangita and her friend Seema, who have been hospitalised, are taking the SLC exams from KMC and Bir hospitals.

Feigns unconsciousness

The accused in the acid attack pretended to be unconscious during the press meet. BK, who had been handcuffed was taken to Police Hospital where doctors found him alright, police said.