KARACHI: Pakistani officials say a rickshaw driver who set himself on fire to protest police demands for bribes, has died of severe burns in Karachi.
Mohammad Khalid died on Monday morning, two days after setting himself on fire.
Khalid’s self-immolation — according to a letter featured on Pakistan’s Geo Television station — was an act of protest against police demands for bribes. Khalid reportedly refused to pay a bribe to an officer who then fined Khalid a ticket amounting to a quarter of his daily earnings.
Amir Ahmed Shaikh, the police chief in Karachi, said an investigation is underway.
Following the incident, Shaikh ordered the police not to impose heavy fines on rickshaw drivers for traffic violations in the city.
A rickshaw is a motorized three-wheeled vehicle usually carrying one passenger.
Pakistani dies after immolation to protest police bribery
Pakistani dies after immolation to protest police bribery
- Mohammad Khalid died on Monday morning, two days after setting himself on fire
- Following the incident, Pakistani police chief ordered his men not to impose heavy fines on rickshaw drivers for traffic violations in the city
EU looks to soften energy bill pressures for industry, document shows
- Brussels is looking for quick fixes after companies warned they cannot compete with rivals in China and the US
- The paper said the Commission would look at network charges
BRUSSELS: The European Union is examining energy taxes, network charges and carbon costs as possible areas for short-term measures to ease pressure on industries hit by high energy prices, a document seen by Reuters showed.
Brussels is looking for quick fixes after companies warned they cannot compete with rivals in China and the US — even before this week’s surge in oil and gas prices sparked by the US-Israeli war on Iran. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has pledged to present options for EU leaders to consider at a summit on 19 March.
A Commission paper prepared for a meeting of EU Commissioners on Friday showed the bloc is exploring short-term measures to help the hardest-hit regions and sectors, without undermining longer-term climate laws meant to shift Europe to a cheaper, low-carbon energy system.
“Any proposal for legislative change will not deliver immediately and a bridge solution may be needed to reduce energy prices in the next 2-5 years until the clean transition eases pressure on power prices as already seen in some regions,” said the document, seen by Reuters.
The paper said the Commission would look at network charges — which make up about 18 percent of industrial power bills — and national taxes and levies, as well as carbon costs, which account for around 11 percent of bills.
It noted that governments are underusing existing tools to cut companies’ energy bills, including state aid to offset carbon costs and contracts for difference that guarantee industrial consumers a stable power price. The document said that if energy supplies are disrupted further, Brussels must be ready to introduce measures to encourage consumers to use less energy, as it did in 2022 when Russia slashed gas deliveries.
A Commission spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
