Delhi shop fire: Owner held, probe reveals no fire safety equipment in building

New Delhi, Aug 19 (PTI) The owner of Mahajan Electronics was arrested on Tuesday, after a massive fire in the store killed four workers, including three women, an official said.

The accused, identified as Mansh Mahajan, was arrested in Delhi.

The electronics shop located in west Delhi's Raja Garden had no fire safety equipment, separate exit or suppression system in place, said the officer, adding that the fire broke out on the second floor of Mahajan Electronics.

"After registering an FIR, multiple teams were formed to investigate the entire matter. The owner of the store was arrested on Tuesday," the police officer said.

Following the incident, the crime team of the west district inspected the site and took photographs for evidence.

"During inspection, no fire safety equipment was found in place," the officer informed.

Apart from the absence of fire extinguishers, there was also no automatic suppression system, separate exit, fire blankets, fire hoses or any arrangement to tackle a blaze in its early stage, the officer added.

According to the police, the fire department teams had to break down a wall to rescue five workers who were trapped on the second floor of the store where the blaze had spread.

The blaze was reported to the Delhi Fire Services at 3.08 pm on Monday, and five fire tenders were deployed. Five people were removed from the building and rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment.

During treatment, Aayushi (22), Payal (20), Amandeep Kaur (22) and Ravi (28) died, and another worker, Sandeep Sharma (25), is still undergoing treatment. All of them were employees at the shop.

According to officials, the showroom of Mahajan Electronics is located on the ground floor, the first floor is used as a godown, and the building has two other floors. PTI BM BM MPL MPL