Kolkata hotel fire: Owner, manager held, probe panel to submit report in 15 days

Kolkata: The owner and manager of Hotel Rituraj in central Kolkata, where a fire broke out on Tuesday night killing at least 14 people, including two children, and injuring over a dozen, were arrested on Thursday, police said.

The hotel’s owner, Akash Chawla, and manager, Gaurav Kapoor, were arrested following an FIR registered by Kolkata Police on Wednesday. “We have charged the hotel authorities under relevant sections, including culpable homicide not amounting murder, of the Bharatiya Nyaya Samhita and the Fire Services Act,” a police officer said.

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, meanwhile, has set up a committee headed by state urban development minister Firhad Hakim to check the fire fighting systems in hotels, malls and markets across the state and submit a report within 15 days.

“Make surprise visits and check details (fire-fighting systems). I want a report within 15 days. No combustible materials such as plastic and chemicals should be stored in shops and shopping malls. The fire-fighting system should be checked regularly. If there are multiple gas cylinders, the fire spreads fast. There are areas where the fire tenders can’t enter. I am giving 15 days’ time,” Banerjee said.

At least 10 fire tenders were deployed after the fire broke out around 8.20 pm on the first floor of the six-storey hotel on Madan Mohan Burman Street.

Also Read: Kolkata: At least 14 persons, including 2 children, killed in hotel fire

One hotel-staff, identified as Manoj Paswas, died after he jumped from one of the floors. “Autopsies of the bodies revealed that in most cases deaths were caused by asphyxia, due to inhalation of carbon soot and in at least two cases thermal burn injuries,” the officer said. 

Banerjee, who visited the spot, said the hotel’s fire-fighting system was allegedly defunct.

“Most of the people died not because of the blaze, but because of the smoke. There was no mechanism for the smoke to escape. The fire-fighting system was defunct. There were pipes but there was no water. There was a staircase but it couldn’t be used while people were trying to escape. Two people got trapped in the staircase and died. Police and fire-brigade could save around 90 people through an adjacent building using ladders,” Banerjee added.

The Kolkata police have set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe into the case.

Also Read:Kolkata hotel fire eyewitnesses recount harrowing ordeal

Preliminary investigations revealed that the hotel, which had been operating since 1989, had a fire safety clearance that expired in 2022 and was not renewed thereafter.

“As most of the victims were from other states, the state administration are making flight arrangements to send their bodies to their home-state after the postmortem. The administration would also issue the death certificates,” an officer said.

Raising concern about the several dilapidated buildings in the Burrabazar area that are still occupied by residents, Banerjee said, “The civic body has sent them notices to vacate the building. The residents are, however, not moving out. I would ask the police, fire brigade and Kolkata municipal corporation (KMC) to hold a meeting with the locals so that the buildings could be repaired and renovated. Safety and security are foremost.”

The SIT and forensic team also visited the hotel on Thursday to collect samples from the spot.

Also Read:4 killed after fire breaks out in Ajmer hotel, 5 critical

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), however, alleged that the fire which killed 14 people was due to the ”gross negligence” of the state government and the city’s civic body.”

“I demand a high-level, transparent probe to uncover the lapses that led to this tragedy and to hold all responsible accountable, be it negligent officials, complicit inspectors, or the hotel management. The State’s failure to prioritize public safety cannot be swept under the rug by putting the entire blame on the Hotel Management, by treating them as scapegoats,” BJP legislator and leader of the opposition Suvendu Adhikari wrote on X.