Greater Noida Woman’s Death: Husband Shot While Trying to Escape Police Custody

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, Aug 24, 2025: Vipin Bhati, arrested for allegedly setting his wife Nikki Bhati on fire, sustained a gunshot wound in the leg after attempting to flee police custody on Saturday, officials said.

Vipin was taken into custody after Nikki, 28, died during treatment at Delhi’s Safdarjung Hospital on Thursday. She had been admitted with severe burn injuries sustained at her in-laws’ house in Greater Noida.

According to police, Vipin’s sister-in-law Kanchan—married to his brother Rohit—alleged that Vipin and his mother Daya doused Nikki with a flammable liquid and set her ablaze. Chilling videos shared by Kanchan appear to show the mother and son assaulting Nikki, followed by visuals of the victim engulfed in flames stumbling down a staircase.

While Vipin has been arrested, his mother Daya, father Satyavir, and brother Rohit remain absconding.

On Saturday morning, senior police officer Sudhir Kumar said Vipin was taken to his home to recover the bottle containing the flammable liquid. “He snatched a policeman’s pistol and opened fire. In retaliatory firing, he suffered a bullet injury in his leg,” Kumar told reporters.

Speaking to ANI from hospital, Vipin denied the charges, claiming, “I have not done anything. She died on her own. Fights between husband and wife happen everywhere. It is not a big deal.”

Nikki’s father, Bhikari Singh Payla, expressed outrage, demanding strict action against the accused. “They are killers, they should be shot, their home razed. My daughter was raising her son by running a parlour. The whole family conspired and killed her,” he told NDTV. After Vipin’s encounter, he added, “I am happy. Such people should be shot or hanged. He should have been shot in the chest.”

Nikki and her sister Kanchan had married brothers Vipin and Rohit in December 2016. Kanchan alleged her in-laws were never satisfied with the dowry given, despite their parents gifting a Scorpio SUV, a Royal Enfield bike, cash, and gold. “Our parents did all they could, but they kept criticising—even saying the clothes gifted by our parents cost only Rs 2,” she recalled.

Police are continuing efforts to trace Vipin’s absconding family members.