An Indian court has sentenced a man, Kishandas, to death for setting his wife, Lakshmi, on fire because of her dark skin tone — a ruling described as both rare and historic in addressing the country’s entrenched colourism.
According to BBC, the incident occurred on June 24, 2017, just a year after their marriage. Court documents reveal that Kishandas often mocked Lakshmi for her complexion, calling her “kali” and body-shaming her.
On the night of the attack, he brought home a plastic bottle filled with a brown liquid, allegedly marketed as skin-lightening medicine. Lakshmi testified that he applied it on her body, and when she protested about the strong acid-like smell, he lit an incense stick and set her ablaze. He then poured the rest of the liquid on her while she burned before fleeing. Lakshmi’s family rushed her to hospital, but she later died of her injuries.
Judge Rahul Choudhary, in his ruling, condemned the killing as “a crime against humanity,” stressing that Kishandas “broke her trust” and showed “excessive cruelty in throwing the remaining liquid on her” while she was in flames.
He described the case as belonging to the “rarest of the rare” category, adding, “It will not be an exaggeration to say that this heart-rending brutal crime was not just against Lakshmi, but it’s a crime against humanity… It’s a crime that shocks the conscience of humanity, which cannot even be imagined in a healthy and civilised society.”
The public prosecutor hailed the verdict as “historic,” noting: “A young woman in her early 20s was brutally murdered. She was someone’s sister, someone’s daughter; there were people who loved her. If we don’t save our daughters, then who would?”
The case has reignited conversations around colourism in India, where women with darker skin frequently face discrimination and abuse. Campaigns to challenge these harmful norms have grown, but the preference for lighter skin remains widespread, often with devastating consequences.
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