- Nikki, 28, was allegedly assaulted and set on fire at her in-laws' home in Greater Noida on Thursday
- Nikki was murdered over the alleged dowry demand of Rs 36 lakh
- Rohit Bhati, brother-in-law of Nikki, has been arrested. Husband Vipin and mother-in-law Daya arrested earlier
Nikki Bhati's brother-in-law Rohit Bhati, and father-in-law Satyavir have been arrested in the alleged dowry murder of 28-year-old woman. Nikki died of severe burn injuries during treatment at Delhi's Safdarjung hospital after she was allegedly assaulted and set on fire at her in-laws' home in Greater Noida. Last week, on Thursday, Nikki Bhati was murdered over the alleged dowry demand of Rs 36 lakh. Her husband, Vipin Bhati, and mother-in-law, Daya, were arrested earlier.
Satyavir, Nikki Bhati's father-in-law, has been arrested.
Nikki Bhati Was Burnt Alive
On Thursday (August 21) evening, 28-year-old Nikki Bhati was physically assaulted by her husband and mother-in-law. According to a First Information Report (FIR) filed by Kanchan, Nikki's sister, who is married in the same house to Vipin's brother, Rohit, when she intervened, she was thrashed too.
Vipin allegedly poured a flammable substance on Nikki and set her on fire.
Horrifying videos shared by Kanchan show Vipin and Daya physically assaulting Nikki. Another clip shows burning Nikki walking down a staircase. In another video clip, Nikki can be seen sitting on the floor with severe burn injuries.
Vipin Bhati Shot At While Trying To Escape Police Custody
On Sunday, Vipin suffered a gunshot wound in his leg while trying to escape police custody. Senior police officer Sudhir Kumar told the media that they took Vipin to his home to recover the bottle containing the flammable liquid used to burn Nikki. "He snatched a cop's pistol and opened fire. In retaliatory firing, he suffered a bullet injury in his leg."
This came hours after the victim's father, Bikhari Singh Payla, told NDTV that he wanted the accused to be shot. "They are killers, they should be shot, their home razed. My daughter was bringing up her son by running a parlour. They tortured her. The whole family was involved in the conspiracy, and they killed my daughter," he said.
Nikki Died On Her Own: Vipin Bhati
Vipin was taken to a hospital for treatment after he suffered a leg injury in an encounter with police. Speaking from the hospital bed, Vipin said he did not kill his wife and she "died on her own".
"I have no remorse. I haven't killed her. She died on her own. Husbands and wives often have fights...it is very common," he told news agency ANI.
Nikki's Family Gave Huge Dowry
Nikki and Kanchan married brothers Vipin and Rohit, respectively, on December 10, 2016. According to Kanchan, their father gave huge dowry but Bhati family kept demanding more and assaulting the two sisters.
"Our father gifted a top-model Scorpio SUV, a Bullet (Royal Enfield) bike, cash, gold, everything. Besides this, gifts would be sent from our home on Karwa Chauth. Our parents did all they could, but the in-laws were not happy. They kept criticising. They would say the clothes gifted by my parents cost Rs 2," a shaken Kanchan, who saw her sister in flames, told NDTV.
The two sisters ran a make-up studio, but the in-laws didn't like this, said Kanchan. "They would take all our earnings. We were beaten up over this," she added.
Kanchan, who shot the video of Nikki being beaten up and set on fire, believes that no one would have got to know about the incident had she not recorded it.
"I poured water, tried to save her, but fainted midway," she said.
