BERHAMPUR: A 57-year-old high school teacher was arrested in Odisha’s Ganjam district on Saturday after his 22-year-old daughter, who allegedly attempted suicide at her in-laws’ house earlier this week, accused him of sexually abusing her for years, including after her marriage, police said.The woman suffered 75% burn injuries after allegedly setting herself on fire on Thursday and was later shifted to a hospital in Bhubaneswar after her condition turned critical.Police said the allegations surfaced when the woman named her father and two others while her statement was being recorded at MKCG Medical College and Hospital.“The incident of her father’s sexual assault came to light when the victim disclosed his name along with two others during recording of her statement at MKCG Medical College and Hospital. The father was arrested based on prima facie evidence against him,” Additional Superintendent of Police (Berhampur) Alok Jena said.According to the officer, the woman alleged that her father had sexually assaulted her before her marriage and continued to abuse her even after she got married.Police said the accused had allegedly borrowed Rs 10 lakh from the victim’s father-in-law but failed to repay the amount.“The father-in-law asked the victim to ask her father to return the money. When she did so, the accused allegedly blackmailed her and threatened to make her intimate pictures public, following which she took the extreme step,” Jena said.Investigators have seized two mobile phones, one belonging to the accused and that of the victim.“Two mobile phones, one of the father and that of the victim, were seized for investigation. The scientific team has visited the crime spot and collected some physical and material evidence,” he added, noting that a case has been registered at the Nimakhandi police station.Further investigation is underway.(With PTI inputs)
