September 27, 2008	Saturday	Ramazan 26, 1429

TAXILA, Sept 26: A newly-wed bride suffered frightful torture allegedly at the hands of her husband and in-laws who tried to make her consume acid and then threw the chemical over her causing burn injuries, the victim and her family said on Friday.

Shaista Batool, 20, contracted love marriage with Jamshaid, a sculptor at Dhabian village in Taxila, six months ago but she was not accepted by her in-laws.

Shaista, who is now under treatment at a local hospital, told reporters that soon after Iftar on Thursday, Jamshaid quarreled with her and then attempted to force her drink some liquid, which later proved to be acid.

After failing to kill Shaista by making her drink the acid, Jamshaid with the help of his brother Shoaib and mother Rashida overpowered her and threw the chemical all over her body causing severe injuries.

Shaista’s calls for help attracted the attention of the neighbours who rushed to save her. On receiving information, Shaista’s family also reached the scene and shifted her to the Tehsil Headquarters (THQ) hospital, Taxila.

When contacted, Sub-Inspector Fateh Khan of the Cantonment police station told this correspondent that on the application of the victim, a case had been registered against the accused and raids were being conducted to arrest them.