A sadhu who had set himself on fire to protest against illegal mining in Deeg, Rajasthan on Wednesday was declared dead in a Delhi hospital on Sunday.
“Sadhu Vijay Das died at around 2.30 am in the hospital where he was undergoing treatment after his self-immolation attempt. The post-mortem has been scheduled for 9 am,” informed Sub Divisional Officer, Sanjay Goyal.
Amid protests over illegal mining in the area, Sadhu Vijay Das on Wednesday attempted self-immolation after which police officials rushed him to the hospital. For a long time, locals and sadhus had been demanding a ban on the mines.
Earlier on July 21, his condition was stable. District Collector Alok Ranjan informed about his condition and said, “Sadhu Vijay Das (who set himself ablaze) in Deeg is stable now. The Sadhus have ended their protest (over stone mining). The state government will issue a notification in the next 15 days to declare it’s as a forest area. Mines located here are old mines.”
Moreover, the administration assured the sadhus that mines will be shifted from the area and it will be transformed into a religious tourist spot. “These mines will be shifted and about 2,500 people who will be unemployed as a result, will be employed somewhere else…The state government intends to make it (stone mining area) into a religious tourism spot,” Ranjan added.
Earlier on Tuesday morning, a sadhu climbed atop a mobile tower to protest stone mining in the area, and eventually, he was persuaded to come down.