May 06, 2008	Tuesday	Rabi-us-Sani 29, 1429

SWABI, May 5: A 37-year-old man doused himself in kerosene oil and set himself on fire in Topi bazaar on Monday in protest against skyrocketing prices and unemployment.

Mohammad Shafiq, a farmer from Charoona, 56 kilometers south-east of Swabi, in the Gadoon Amazai area, had gone to the bazaar to buy foodstuff for his family. But he was unable to buy anything because of the high prices.

“Being short of money, he felt dejected and frustrated. He said he felt ashamed to go home empty handed. ‘Pity the man who can’t feed his family’,” a shopkeeper said.

He said that Shafiq got hold of a bottle of kerosene oil, poured it over himself, struck a match and set himself ablaze in public.

“People tried to put out the fire but it was too intense. They could not save him,” an eyewitness said. “He was taken to hospital in Topi in a critical condition.” Doctors said that the man had suffered more than 90 per cent burns and could not survive.

Local social welfare organisations expressed deep shock over the incident and urged the government to take steps to curb the price hike because the common man was facing intense hardships. They said that effective measures were needed to prevent the recurrence of such a gory incident.