A day after a woman tahsildar was allegedly burnt alive at her office near here, her driver, who tried to rescue her, succumbed to injuries on Tuesday, police said.
Tahsildar Vijaya Reddy, 37, died on the spot after shewas allegedly set on fire at her office in Abdullapurmet by KSuresh over some land dispute.
Two staff members, including Vijaya's driver Gurunatham (27), who came to her rescue too were seriously injured even as the assailant, who suffered 60 per cent burns, were all admitted to different hospitals in the city.
"Gurunatham succumbed to his injuries at a hospital while undergoing treatment," Rachakonda Police Commissioner Mahesh M Bhagwat told PTI.
Suresh, who is currently undergoing treatment in a hospital, is said to be in critical condition.
Vijaya Reddys funeral rites were performed at Nagole here.
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Earlier, hundreds of revenue and other government department employees visited her house here to pay their last respects and later participated in the funeral procession.
Demanding a transparent probe by the government into the incident , Vijaya Reddys husband Subash Reddy said I suspect one person alone cannot resort to such a heinous crime. I suspect some forces are behind her murder.
The incident happened at around 1.30 PM on Monday when Suresh, a local who came to the tahsildar's office on a two-wheeler, poured petrol on her and set her afire using a lighter.
The Commissioner said a scientific investigation was on and they were probing from all angles to ascertain the exact reason that provoked Suresh to take such a step.
Police were questioning the family members of Suresh, checking his phone call data records and verifying land documents as part of the investigation.
Suresh had told police that he is a farmer and also into real estate and co-owned 7 acre agriculture land along with his brother.
The land was transferred to a tenant and a dispute has arisen over it and litigation is on.
Outraged over the incident, Revenue department employees across Telangana staged protests and abstained from work on Tuesday also.
Principal Secretary (Revenue) and senior IAS officer Somesh Kumar said measures would be taken to safeguard all officers and staff.
Addressing district collectors, Kumar said the government and all of us will take all measures to safeguard our officers and staff."