BELAGAVI: A girl who was set on fire by a man from Dharwad recently in the city for spurning his marriage proposal is undergoing treatment for 65 per cent burns at Belgaum district hospital. Besides the Human Rights Commission, Minister for Women and Child Welfare Umashree assured government support for the girl.

During her visit to the hospital, the minister assured her family that the government would bear the expenses for her treatment and education, besides Rs 1 lakh compensation released through the Human Rights Commission.

A resident of Fort locality in Belgaum, the girl had repeatedly ignored the marriage proposal by Mohammad Rafik Husainsab, which angered the latter.

On December 27, Husainsab came to her house and asked her to prepare a cup of tea. When she entered the kitchen, he doused her with kerosene and set her on fire.

According to girl's family, Husainsab himself later got the girl admitted to hospital. According to the police, the accused had a criminal background with cases registered in various police stations.

According to her family, the girl was good at studies and had secured a merit quota seat at a B.Ed College in Bailhongal and was preparing to join the college, when the incident occurred. After meeting the girl, the minister said, the accused has been remanded to judicial custody.