A man from Uttar Pradesh set himself on fire at Vijay Chowk in the national capital on Thursday to protest police apathy in the case of rape of his two-year-old daughter.

The girl's father, Mukesh Kumar, has been running from pillar to post seeking justice for his daughter, who had been raped in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly district.

Kumar, who made the self-immolation bid in the heart of the city close to the Rashtrapati Bhavan, was saved by the police and detained. He said the police even refused to register a case.

"My two-year-old daughter was raped in Bareilly. When I went to the SSP, he said I will get you a job. No one heard me. No FIR was lodged. I have been wandering for two months," the man alleged.