Kasaragod: A 30-year-old woman who runs a grocery shop was set on fire by the next-door furniture shop owner — two weeks after she reported him to the police for repeatedly abusing her while drunk and gawking at her.

The arson attack took place at Mannadukkam, near Munnad in Bedadka grama panchayat, on Tuesday, April 8. Ramitha, with severe burns across her body, is battling for her life at AJ Hospital in Mangaluru.

The assailant, Ramamrutham — a native of Tamil Nadu — is in police custody but has not been formally arrested yet, as he remains under the influence of alcohol, said Bedakam Station House Officer - Rajeevan Valiyavalappil.

Around 3.30 pm, Ramamrutham came to Ramitha's shop, poured thinner on her, and set her on fire in front of her 10-year-old son, said her neighbour E Raghavan.

Two other customers were also present. The boy is traumatised, but he and the two customers escaped without injuries. Her husband Nandakumar Mannadukam works in Dubai.

Ramamrutham had been living in Bedadka and neighbouring Kuttikol panchayats for the past 25 years.  Six months ago, he rented a shop next to Ramitha's grocery store to run a furniture business.

Ramitha felt uncomfortable around him because of his constant gawking and drunken verbal abuse, said E Mohanan, another neighbour who was also at the hospital in Mangaluru. Two weeks ago, she went to Bedadka Police Station and filed a complaint, he said.

Inspector Valiyavalappil said it was a minor complaint, so no FIR was registered. "But we warned him to leave the place. We also called the building owner (Karunakaran) and asked him to evict him from the shop," said the officer.

Karunakaran, according to the inspector, threw all the furniture pieces into the verandah and shut down the shop two weeks ago. Ramamrutham never collected his goods. Among them was a bottle of thinner, left lying in the corridor. On Tuesday, the flammable liquid left behind became the tool of his revenge.