A breastfeeding mother, Zara Muhammad, has been hospitalised after she was allegedly severely burnt with hot water by her stepmother in Kofa, Maiduguri, Borno State.
The incident reportedly happened on Sunday after an argument between the two women.
A neighbour, also named Zara, said residents rushed to the house after hearing the victim scream.
“I rushed to the house and found the stepmother pressing the girl onto the spilled hot water. I scolded her and used all my strength to pull her away. Unfortunately, she had already suffered severe burns before we rescued her,” she said.
Residents alleged that Zara had faced hardship after becoming pregnant when her lover reportedly abandoned her. They also claimed her parents pressured her to terminate the pregnancy, but she refused.
After giving birth, neighbours said she was allegedly starved and mistreated whenever disagreements arose.
Zara Muhammad said the latest incident began when her daughter tried to enter her stepmother’s room. She said the stepmother stopped the toddler, forcing her to intervene and take her daughter away.
According to her, the disagreement continued for three days before her stepmother allegedly threatened to stop feeding them.
“When I replied that God would provide for me and my little girl, she rushed at me and pressed me into the boiling water she had spilled on the ground,” she said.
Witnesses alleged that Zara was left in pain without proper medical care after the attack.
Her father, however, denied claims of neglect or protecting his wife, saying, “She was even taken to hospital.”
Following intervention by Women Affairs Commissioner Hajiya Zuweira Gambo, a response team took Zara to a medical facility. Her stepmother was arrested and placed in security custody.
