The body of 28-year-old Pebam Chittaranjan lies on a bed in a hospital in Imphal, the capital of Manipur, on Monday.

Chittaranjan, a student, had torched himself to protest against the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, which gives sweeping power to the armed forces in the northeast to detain and interrogate suspected terrorists.

Chittaranjan doused himself with kerosene and set himself ablaze August 15, India's  Independence Day to demand an end to an anti-terror law.

The law also lets troops shoot on sight and detain without warrant.

Photograph: STR/AFP/Getty Images