A 27-year-old woman died of burn injuries at Badebarsain Municipality-1 in Sapari district on Saturday night.

Prameshwar Sah allegedly doused petrol on his sister-in-law Raj Kumari Sah and set her ablaze while the latter was preparing a meal in their residence on Friday. The victim, who sustained critical burn injuries, died in the course of treatment at Max Hospital in Biratnagar on Saturday.

According to the hospital, the victim sustained burns to 80 percent of her body in the incident.

“I was in Barsain Bazaar when the incident took place. The neighbours immediately gathered and tried to douse the fire when she cried for help. I reached home when one of my neighbours called me. Almost all of her body was burnt when I reached home. We rushed her to Biratnagar but could not save her life,” said Rabin Sah, Raj Kumari’s husband.

According to Rabin, his three-year-old daughter, who was near her mother, also sustained minor burn injuries in the incident.

Preliminary investigation shows that Prameshwar brought a litre of petrol and poured it on Raj Kumari. His wife is currently visiting her family with her newborn. There were no adults at home when the incident took place, police said.

The two brothers, along with their wives and children, live with their mother at Dhangadhi settlement in Badebarsain-1. Prameshwar is currently unemployed.

According to family members, the two brothers had an argument two days before the incident when Rabin accused Prameshwar of being lazy.

The investigation officers suspect that the incident might have taken place due to personal vendetta.

Prameshwar fled the village soon after the incident. Rabin lodged a complaint with the police demanding the arrest of his brother and legal action against him.

“We are searching for the suspect. Detailed investigation into the case is underway,” said Deputy Superintendent of Police Madhav Prasad Kafle.

Burns are the second most common injury in rural Nepal, accounting for 5 percent of disabilities, according to the World Health Organisation. Women's rights organisations say that beating and burning are the two most common forms of domestic violence in the country.