Lawyer sets himself afire in Gujarat HC

In a shocking incident, a lawyer on Monday set himself ablaze inside the Gujarat High Court premises and rushed towards the court of the chief justice.

Panic prevailed in the court premises as lawyer Kishore Agrawal from Surat was seen rushing towards the chief justice's court.

Other lawyers caught him and doused the fire. They took him to the nearby Sola civil hospital for treatment. He sustained 15 percent burns and is now said to be stable.

Agrawal was to defend himself in the court in a case of financial embezzlement and cheating women. He is accused of fleecing women in the name of getting them benefits of several state government schemes.

"For the last four years, he has been collecting Rs.1,800 for forms with a promise of getting us benefits of government schemes. He made us members of the Noori Parivar and promise us financial aid from the government," said one of the complainant women.

The complainants said Agrawal allegedly set himself on fire to seek the court's sympathy to pose as a victim and avoid punishment.

Many cases of cheating are registered against Agrawal in Kapodara police station of Surat.

Police said they were looking into how he was able to sneak in inflammable material inside the court premises.