Contractor sets himself ablaze near Vidhan Bhawan

lkoreportersdesk@htlive.com

lkoreportersdesk@htlive.com

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A 45-year-old contractor Virendra Kumar Rastogi attempted suicide on Tuesday by setting himself ablaze near the Vidhan Bhawan, said police.

The man claimed that he took the extreme step because Rajkiya Nirman Nigam (RNN) officials had not cleared his dues of around ₹24 lakh for the shuttering work done by him over the past 14 years.

Rastogi started running with fire around his lower portion of the body but the cops rescued him.

Police said the contractor, who hails from Sitapur, suffered burn injuries in his thighs and legs and was undergoing treatment at the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Hospital.

Rastogi suffered around 9% burns and doctors claimed he was out of danger, said Abhay Mishra, CO, Hazratganj.

“According to Rastogi, he had shuttering work in different projects of the RNN in 2005 and 2006 and his payment of around ₹24 lakh was pending with the agency since then. The contractor stated that he set himself ablaze following non-payment by the agency for such a long time,” stated Mishra.