Mandya : A 19-year-old married woman was tortured, stripped and set ablaze allegedly by her husband’s relatives on an isolated road near Malavalli in the district on Wednesday night. She succumbed to burns on Thursday morning.

According to police, Shilpa from upper caste recently married a boy from lower caste, ignoring strong resistance from both families. Abhijit, 24, works as a mechanic in a car garage. They stayed in Metagalli Colony in Mysore.

Police sources said the boy’s parents allegedly disowned him after he spiked their advice and married out of caste. Later, Abhijit’s father’s younger brother Puttaswamy and wife Pramila gave shelter to the newlyweds.

The boy’s uncle and aunt are the prime suspects in the murder case, police said. “Pramila has been arrested and is being interrogated to throw light on the murder plot,” a senior police officer from jurisdictional Kirigavulu station said.

The couple’s marital life was far from perfect, and this was made worse by Abhijit’s uncle and aunt who allegedly worked towards wrecking their marriage so that the boy could marry within their caste.

Police said the boy’s foster parents allegedly hatched a plot to kill her and brought her to Mudukutore, about 48km from Mysore, on the pretext of visiting Mallikarjunaswamy temple. On their way back home, they stopped the car at an isolated stretch near Kannahalli in Malavalli taluk and allegedly tried to strangulate Shilpa. She overpowered the accused and tried to flee from there.

But the accused caught hold of Shilpa, tied her hands and legs with rope, disrobed her and doused kerosene on her before setting her ablaze around 11pm on Wednesday. Presuming she’s dead, the couple allegedly drove away from the place.

Around daybreak on Thursday, passersby found the victim writhing in pain. They immediately informed police and shifted her to Mandya Medical College Hospital where she succumbed.

Shilpa’s mother Mangala suspected the involvement of Abhijit’s uncle and aunt in the murder. Police said Abhijit’s role, if any, is yet to be established. “I lost my husband some time ago, and we are poor. Despite my objection, Shilpa married Abhijit. The rift occurred possibly because Shilpa didn’t bring dowry or own any property,” she alleged.