Ghaziabad, Sept. 10 -- A 20-year-old man allegedly set himself on fire outside Nehru Garden police outpost in Khoda Colony on Wednesday evening, claiming that cops had pressured him to compromise with three men who had allegedly assaulted him.
Irfan, a resident of Vandana Vihar, suffered serious burn injuries to both hands and his torso. He was taken to GTB Hospital in Delhi. People at the outpost managed to douse the flames and tore off his shirt while trying to save him. "Based on a complaint filed by Irfan, the process of registering an FIR is underway. We have also detained a few people in the matter. We are also investigating any negligence from the cops present at the outpost," said ACP Amit Saxena.
The incident followed a dispute involving a hardware shop rented by Zaid Siddiqui from Sherpal Yadav. Sherpal, Soni Yadav and Akash Yadav, who run a water supply business, allegedly parked their tanker and tractor outside the shop. Neighbours had also complained that the vehicles blocked their passage. The trio allegedly blamed Siddiqui for the complaints, assaulted him and locked his shop. Irfan had participated in a subsequent protest
against the assault organised by residents and members of Bharatiya Kisan Union (Gajay).
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.