Unnao: A Dalit man died days after he set himself on fire at the office of the Unnao superintendent of police in Uttar Pradesh, accusing the police of not doing justice to him in a land dispute case, a senior police official said.
Srichandra, a resident of Bhulemau village in the Purva Kotwali area, poured kerosene and set himself on fire on Wednesday. The police personnel present on the spot extinguished the fire by covering him with a blanket and rushed him to the district hospital. With 60 per cent burn injuries, he was subsequently referred to a hospital in Lucknow, where he died on Friday.
After postmortem in Lucknow, the body was brought to his village around 3 pm, an officer said. The two officials whom Srichandra had accused of meting out injustice to him have been removed from their posts. Angry locals and family members blocked the Purva-Achalganj road by keeping the body on the road as they demanded action against the erring officers and compensation for the wife of the deceased.
The officer said the victim's family has been assured of all benefits under government schemes. Talking to reporters earlier, the man's brother said their ancestral land in the village was encroached upon by some Muslim men. When an objection was raised, they attacked the family with an intention to kill after which a case was registered.
The man's brother alleged that instead of taking action against the attackers, the police filed a fake case against the complainant. He said his family members had met officials and pleaded for justice, but to no avail. Subsequently, his brother tried to commit suicide at the office of the superintendent of police, he added.
