A day after a major fire left 21 people dead at the Flourish Stay B&B in Delhi’s Malviya Nagar, the building’s owner Lavkesh Bajaj was remanded to four days of police custody by a district court on Thursday, on charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, among others. Mr. Bajaj’s manager Rakesh and his accountant Jay Mishra — in whose name the B&B license was issued — are still absconding, the Delhi police said.
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has identified 12 other bed and breakfast (B&B) lodgings in the area which were operating in violation of their permits from the Delhi Tourism Department, offering accomodation far in excess of the permitted six rooms. The Delhi government says it will seal all unauthorised constructions and buildings operating without fire safety equipment as part of a month-long crackdown.
In the case of Flourish Stay B&B, it had an illegal 24 rooms spead across six floors, apart from a restaurant on the ground floor, which also did not have the necessary licence. The B&B was being run without any fire No Objection Certificate (NOC), and was misusing the permits issued by the State tourism department, the police said.
The Hauz Rani area of Malviya Nagar, where the tragedy occurred, is a medical tourism hub and has a large number of hotels providing accomodation for patients at the nearby Max hospital and their caretakers. Twelve of those killed in the blaze were foreign nationals, hailing from Congo, Mozambique, Liberia, and Bangladesh, and their bodies were handed over to their respective embassies on Thursday.
At least 13 international patients injured in the blaze are still admitted at Max Saket, along with two Indians who were also injured. Six patients are on ventilator support, while nine patients have been admitted to the ICUs and wards, the hospital said in a statement. One patient was discharged later in the day.
The police have registered a case under Sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 326(g) (offence of mischief by fire), 324(5) (wrongful damage of property), 125(a) (negligent act that endangers human life and safety), 125(b) (grievous hurt by negligence), and 287 (negligent conduct with respect to fire) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
The police are yet to identify others involved in the construction, management, and operation of the premises and ascertain their respective roles. The investigation will include recovery of guest registers, booking records, online booking details, financial records, and bank account records of the hotel.
The Delhi government announced a month-long crackdown on fire norms violators, beginning Thursday. The fire safety norms will be checked in all hotels, lodges, inns, nursing homes, coaching institutes, restaurants, and other vulnerable commercial establishments. “As part of this drive, all those unauthorised establishments running without fire safety equipment and unauthorised constructions will be sealed,” said A.K. Malik, Deputy Chief Fire Officer, Delhi Fire Services, though official orders are yet to be issued.
The MCD will seek the cancellation of the licence of the 12 B&Bs which have been identified as violators of Delhi’s B&B policy, said Rakesh Kumar, Deputy Commissioner of MCD south zone. He explained that once the B&B licences are cancelled by the State Tourism Department in this case, the MCD will seal the premises of these facilities. Following the sealing of B&B facilities in Hauz Rani, a similar drive will follow in Khirki, Humanyunpur, Deoli and Khanpur, he said.
“We issue licences for restaurants and hotels, but B&B doesn’t fall under our purview. Whoever approved the licence for operating B&B needs to carry inspections to ensure the regulations are enforced,” he added.
The MCD did issue a ‘tea and snacks (without seating)’ licence for the Flourish Stay B&B address in 2023, which needs to be renewed yearly. In reality, however, the building has a much larger restaurant with seating. The licence-granting process at the time did not require any physical verification.
The MCD South Zone Building Department has prepared a status report on the Flourish building, which has been sent to the MCD Commissioner. A team headed by the building department will be formed, following detailed instructions from the Delhi Lt. Governor, to identify ground-plus-four-floor residential and commercial buildings which pose a dangerous risk, after which demolition or evacuation orders will be considered, Mr. Kumar said.
Published - June 04, 2026 04:51 pm IST
Delhi / fire / disaster management / disaster and accident
Source: The Hindu - India News
