70-year-old man burnt alive in bid to set his neighbour on fire in Ghaziabad

GHAZIABAD: A 70-year-old man was burnt alive as he allegedly doused his neighbour with petrol and set him on fire on Thursday night, police said.
Sitaram's body was found on a farm about 300 metres from his home at Niwari village around 5am on Friday, while his neighbour, Nepal (55), who sustained serious burns, is being treated at a private hospital in Meerut.Cops have sent the body for autopsy.
The attack was apparently the fallout of a bitter dispute between the two men that flared up two months ago after Nepal's horse was injured when the assailant's wife set fire to its tail accidentally while burning some old clothes.
Nepal provides horse rental services in NCR and his business took a hit after the animal was injured. Neighbours told police that the two men fought frequently and finally a panchayat was called to settle the matter. No police case was lodged.

DCP (rural) Vivek Yadav said Nepal (55) and his neighbour Kallu were sleeping outside their houses around 11.15pm on Thursday when Sitaram approached the two men with a can of petrol. "It seems while Sitaram was throwing petrol on Nepal, some of the liquid fell on him. When Sitaram lit a matchstick, both the men caught fire," the officer said.
Kallu told cops that even as Sitaram's clothes caught fire, he kept shouting at Nepal saying "now I have ruined both of us". The septuagenarian allegedly ran off towards his farm once villagers woke up and started gathering nearby.
After a complaint was submitted by Nepal's family, Sitaram was booked for an attempt to murder under IPC Section 307.