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Youth burns self due to police harassment

Sharat Pradhan in Lucknow

A 26-year-old, Mandeep Pal Singh Sodhi, committed suicide in front of the state assembly in Lucknow by setting himself ablaze on Monday.

Mandeep's mother, Manpreet Kaur, has accused the police of driving him to take the extreme step by frequently arresting his brothers - Yashpal and Atinder - on trumped up charges.

"My son gave up his life after realising that our family would never succeed in drawing the attention of the state administration to our family's harassment by the police,'' she said.

Police records confirm that the two men were picked up in connection with a robbery two days back. The mother then sought the help of District Magistrate Sanjay Agarwal, who directed the police station concerned to set them free.

However, Mandeep, unaware of his brothers' release, quietly walked to a busy road just across from the state assembly and set himself ablaze.

He was rushed to the medical college hospital with 80 per cent burns, where he died shortly after admission.

While denying charges of harassment, district police chief G P Sharma said Mandeep's two brothers were listed criminals and had been booked under the Special Gangsters Act, meant for hardened criminals.

But Manpreet Kaur is not willing to believe any of this. "Let the police give one case of their involvement in any criminal activity before being charged under the Gangsters Act. Once they were framed under the Gangsters Act, the police found it convenient to book them for any crime committed in the area," she said.

Residents of the colony where Mandeep lived staged a sit-in in front of the Alambagh police station on Monday demanding punitive action against the police officials responsible for Mandeep's death.

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