Delhi Police to question woman who 'faked' acid attack

The 20-year-old college student who allegedly staged an acid attack on herself at the instance of her father, who wanted revenge against a rape complaint, will be interrogated by the Delhi Police on Tuesday, an official said.

The woman, a second-year B.Com student enrolled with DU's Non-Collegiate Women’s Education Board, had claimed that three men hurled acid on her near Ashok Vihar while she was on her way to an extra class on Sunday.

However, the police said they found no traces of acid at the spot, nor was there any sighting of the attackers in CCTV footage from the crime scene. The Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team also failed to find any discarded acid bottles in the area, and the probe revealed that she had poured toilet cleaner on her own hand to frame the accused, who are her relatives, they said.

A police officer said, "The girl will be examined today. Team, including other senior police officers, will question her to know the reason behind it. So far, we got to know that the entire family is behind the conspiracy," the officer added.

Her father, Akil Khan, was arrested on Monday after he confessed to plotting the fake attack to avenge a rape complaint filed against him by the wife of one of the men his daughter had named. The woman had earlier accused Khan of sexually assaulting her between 2021 and 2024 while she worked in his socks factory.

Meanwhile, the police said the examination of the liquid seized from the scene has confirmed it is a toilet cleaner, not acid. Further probe is underway.