Malviya Nagar warehouse burns in deadly fire; AAP, BJP blame each other

A massive fire broke out in a godown in Khirki Extension area of Malviya Nagar in south Delhi on Tuesday evening and it took 19 hours and assistance from the Indian Air Force to curb it finally in the morning on Wednesday. Earlier, it was reported that the fire had broken out in the rubber factory, but DCP South Delhi Romil Baaniya informed that it was a godown of the company named Maxwell Pvt. Ltd.

Romil Baaniya told NH that the owner of the warehouse Ajay Saini, “who was running it illegally, without permission has been arrested.”

According to Delhi Police, the company Maxwell Pvt Ltd provides rubber raw material for rethreading of vehicle tyres.

It is being alleged that the fire originated from a parked truck, which the Delhi Police’s claimed was loaded with rubber components and it spread quickly to the godown. The warehouse shares its wall with Sant Nirankari Public School and a gym and both these buildings “acted like a shield and prevented the fire from expanding into the nearby areas”, said Somnath Bharti, AAP MLA from Malviya Nagar. The school was shut for summer vacations.

The rubber components stored in metallic and plastic boxes caught fire and it became difficult for the authorities to control the fire. Around 75 fire-tenders were deployed to the site, but it was the assistance from the Indian Air Force on Wednesday morning which helped the authorities finally douse the fire.

The Delhi Police registered an FIR on the godown under sections 285 and 336 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

BJP, AAP shrug off responsibility, blame each other:

Even as the normal life was interrupted due to the fire, 13 buildings, one school and a gym were evacuated for safety reasons and residents had to spend the night at the nearby Apeejay School and in parks nearby, both BJP and AAP resorted to blame the other.

The use of huge volume of water to douse the fire also led to less supply to the residents as already warned by the Delhi Jal Board on Tuesday. Still, the ruling Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi and the Bhartiya Janata Party at the Centre did not shy away from blaming each-other on Wednesday.

What is surprising is, however, both the AAP MLA Somnath Bharti and BJP’s SDMC Chairman Shikha Rai ‘thanked god’ that there was no loss of life due to the fire. Rai alleged that the warehouse belonged to an AAP worker as she had “heard it from the locals”. “We are right now thankful that the fire has been finally doused,” said a relieved Bharti.

BJP leader from Chirag Delhi, Pratibha Chauhan, immediately held Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal responsible for the fire. She said, “According to a Delhi Assembly Committee, every assembly has to have a fire station. Even after land was allocated for it near Malviya Nagar Police Station, the AAP government did not construct it.”

In return, Delhi's ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) alleged they had informed the SDMC and Delhi Police about fire incidents in factories set up illegally in several residential areas of south Delhi but no action was taken.

However, AAP Councillor from Chirag Delhi Pooja Jakhar said she had written to the South Delhi Municipal Corporation, the Delhi Police Commissioner and the District Magistrate in April to bring to their notice about the commercial activities in the area causing serious life risks to the residents.

She had also highlighted in her letter about trucks which came inside colonies round the clock putting the lives and properties of residents at risk.

Congress leader Kiran Walia said, “The elected representatives of the people are more concerned about blaming each other than solving the problem. “Representatives should work towards getting those responsible for the fire booked.”

Bharti stated that there “definitely was going to be an investigation,” and the SDMC Chairman Rai too assured that “there will be a thorough investigation into the matter”.

*This article has been updated on may 30, 2018 at 08:15 pm after conversation with Romil Baaniya who said that the owner of the factory has been arrested