March 20, 2008	Thursday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 11, 1429

HYDERABAD, March 19: An activist of Pakistan People’s Party, Manthar Rahimoon, who had accused the party’s rivals in Umerkot of burning him last week, died at the Hyderabad Civil Hospital's burns ward on Tuesday.

Manthar’s relatives protested against doctors after they were handed over the body and accused them of not providing him proper treatment. Later, they took the body to Chachro for burial.

He suffered serious burns near a petrol pump on the Chore road in Umerkot last week and was moved to Hyderabad Civil Hospital.

According to Umerkot-based journalists, Manthar had accused Rasool Bux Nohri and a number of other people of burning him alive as a punishment for acting as political agent of PPP's candidate Dost Mohammad Rahimoon at a polling station in Tharparkar on Feb 18.

Police had picked up Rasool Bux Nohri, an employee of health department, after Manthar's brother Ayub lodged a case against him and seven others.

Manthar was a truck driver and was sitting at a hotel near the petrol pump when he was attacked.

PPP's Dost Mohammad Rahimoon could not be reached over cell-phone. He, too, had gone to Chachro to attend Manthar’s funeral.