Five people set themselves on fire in Gujarat, leaving one man dead as
they protested against official plans to raze their home in a drive to
remove illegal structures, police said yesterday.
According to GulfTimes
The
five people, including three women, belonged to the same family and
turned up at a city government office in Rajkot carrying kerosene-filled
containers around noon yesterday, the police said.
Ram Sinh, a
police official based in Rajkot said the group came to request the
officials to stop demolition of illegal encroachments.
But when their request was not granted they poured kerosene on themselves and set themselves on fire,Sinh said.
Municipal
officials in Rajkot, located 200km from the states main city Ahmedabad
had declared the familys home illegal and issued an order to tear down
the structure, leaving them in a desperate state, Sinh said.
The five
have been identified as Rekha, Asha, Vasumati, Bharat and Girish …. Out
of which Girish, who was 35-years-old succumbed to injuries in
hospital,he said.
The burn victims sustained severe injuries and have
been admitted to a local government hospital, where their condition is
said to be stable, he added.