These are the horrific acid burns deliberately inflicted on a man so he could steal the identity of his lover's husband - who she had already murdered, it is alleged.

Swathy Reddy, 28, allegedly hatched the plan to kill husband Sudhakar, 32, so she could be with boyfriend Rajesh Ajjakolu, police claim.

The pair apparently told her dead husband’s parents that 'their son' had suffered a horrific accident and needed to be taken to hospital for facial reconstruction.

But after 11 days Sudhakar's mum and dad got suspicious when they noticed his "mannerisms had changed" and informed the police.

Fingerprint checks revealed the burned man wasn't Mr Reddy - but was in fact Rajesh posing as her husband - who had been buried in a forest, it is claimed.

Police have accused the pair of deliberately hatching the plan so he could change his face, and assume Mr Reddy's identity.

Mrs Reddy from the Nagarkurnool district in Telangana, India, has been arrested alongside her co-accused Ajjakolu.

These photos show his injuries for the first time - and the uncanny likeness between the two men.

J Chennaiah, Additional Superintendent of Police, said: "On November 23, a relative from Sudhakar’s family saw the woman going along with Rajesh in her car.

"He immediately brought this to Sudhakar’s notice, who stared forcing her to reveal what was going.

"Since then, he was having intermittent fights with her, and then she hatched a plan to kill him.

"They took him to an isolated place 150 km away from Nagarkurnool and burned him after dousing the body with petrol."

During the interrogation, Swath revealed her husband came to know about their affair days before he was killed on November 26, it is claimed.

Police claim she then poured acid on Rajesh’s face so he would be able to pass as her husband after face reconstruction surgery.

According to police, she told her dead husband’s parents that he suffered a horrific accident and needed to be taken to hospital for facial reconstruction.

J Chennaiah added: "They were told that it requires three consultations to recover from the burns that are of less than 30 per cent."

After surgery, Sudhakar’s parents realised their 'son's' mannerisms had changed and contacted the police.

The country’s Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) ruled Rajesh was an impostor after checking his fingerprints.

“When we cross-checked the fingerprints of Sudhakar with that of the patient, the result was negative,” J Chennaiah said.

The woman told police that she met Rajesh nearly two years ago when she visited his physiotherapy clinic, it is claimed.

Before her husband was killed, the duo apparently consulted a private hospital in Sangareddy about plastic surgery.

They planned to move to Pune once Rajesh recovered and settle with her two children, it is claimed.