Congress president Rahul Gandhi expressed his condolences to the families of the victims, who died in a fire accident at a warehouse in Delhi’s Bawana Industrial Area on Saturday.
Gandhi took to Twitter saying, “My prayers and thoughts are with you as you struggle to come to terms with this tragedy. I also pray that those injured make a speedy recovery”.
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Seventeen people were killed and two injured in a massive blaze at a firecracker storage. The fire, which started at the storage unit on the ground floor of a two-storey building, ripped through the structure, the official said.
Ten women and seven men were killed, another fire official said, noting that a man and woman were injured. The two injured — Roop Prakash (in his 20s) and Sunita (in her 40s) — have been admitted to a hospital.
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Deputy Commissioner of Police (Rohini) Rajneesh Gupta said a person named Manoj Jain has been apprehended and has been booked booked him under sections 285 (Negligent conduct with respect to fire or combustible matter), 304 (Punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 337 ( Causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) of the IPC and Explosives Act at Bawana Police Station Station.
The other partner of Jain has been identified as Lalit Goel. It is to be verified if they were the owners or had taken the premises on rent, he said.
One of the injured labourers told police that the firecrackers used to be brought from outside and were only packed at the unit. The police said they were verifying the claim.
According to media reports, the Delhi Fire service has claimed that the fire have been triggered by a live electric wire, but probe will reveal the cause of the incident.
