An Indian court has sentenced a man, Kishandas, to death for setting his wife, Lakshmi, on fire because of her dark skin.
The judgment, delivered over the weekend, has stirred national debate in a country long plagued by colourism.
According to BBC reports on Wednesday, the attack occurred on June 24, 2017, eight years before the ruling. Lakshmi, who married Kishandas in 2016, had repeatedly endured insults and body-shaming from him, as he mocked her complexion and called her “kali.”
On the night of the incident, Kishandas reportedly brought home a bottle of liquid he claimed was a skin-lightening treatment.
Lakshmi later recounted that he rubbed it on her body, and when she complained of its acid-like smell, he ignited her with an incense stick. He then poured the remaining liquid on her as she burned and fled the scene.
Lakshmi’s family rushed her to the hospital, but she succumbed to her injuries.
Delivering judgment, Judge Rahul Choudhary condemned the act as not just murder but “a crime against humanity.” He said Kishandas had “broken her trust” and displayed “excessive cruelty,” describing the case as one of the “rarest of the rare.”
“It will not be an exaggeration to say that this heart-rending brutal crime was not just against Lakshmi, but against humanity itself,” the judge added.
The public prosecutor hailed the verdict as “historic,” stressing that it should serve as a warning. “A young woman in her early 20s was brutally murdered. She was someone’s daughter, someone’s sister. If we don’t protect our daughters, who will?”
The case has reignited conversations around colourism in India, where darker-skinned women often face deep-rooted discrimination and abuse.
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Despite awareness campaigns, the preference for fair skin remains widespread, fueling tragic incidents like Lakshmi’s.
