Mumbai: Two women suffer mysterious burns at Andheri railway station

Both women felt the burn while walking down this bridge at Andheri station, which leads to the Metro

Two women commuters suffered from a strange burning sensation on their legs after feeling a sticky substance on them during rush hour. The incident occurred at Andheri railway station on December 13. The Andheri GRP has registered a case against unknown persons and sent the women's clothes for forensic analysis. Cops suspect this might have been done by a miscreant to distract commuters while committing a theft.

One of the women who felt the burning sensation was Goregaon resident Vedangi Laghate, 24. Around 9.30 am last Thursday, she was taking a Metro to her workplace in Saki Naka.

"I got down at Andheri railway station and was walking on the bridge that connects to the Metro station, when suddenly I felt something sticky on my right thigh," said Laghate, adding, "It gave me a burning sensation. When I touched it, my fingers started burning too. I rushed to the washroom of the Metro station to see what exactly has happened. There, I found another girl checking her clothes."

A spot on their legs had a burning sensation. Representational Image

The other girl was Shraddha Mistry, 19, who studies mass media at a college in Goregaon. She was checking her cotton palazzo pants. She said, "The cloth had turned hard as wood. While I was trying to wash it off with water, another girl came in. Her dress had been burnt at the same place as me. We talked to each other and rushed to the medical room at the Metro station, where we were given an ointment. Then, we went to the Andheri GRP and informed cops about it."

"Our skin had a burning sensation and had turned red, but it improved a couple of hours after applying ointment," she added. A police officer from Andheri GRP said, "Two women came to us complaining about a burning sensation on their thighs. Their clothes were spoilt too; probably by some liquid or chemical. We asked them to visit Cooper Hospital, where they were given an ointment and medicines."

This is not the first such incident. "A few days ago, the same thing had happened to another woman. She informed cops but refused to register a complaint. This might have been done by some miscreant or thief to divert the attention of commuters and snatch jewellery or mobile phone," the cop added. Senior inspector Pramod Babar of the Andheri GRP said, "We have booked unknown person under section 324 of the IPC. It is still unclear from where this thing appeared on their body. We are scanning CCTV footage to find it."

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