The owner of a building in outer Delhi's Mundka where a massive fire led to the death of 27 people was arrested on Sunday, two days after the incident, police said.
"We received information that Manish Lakra was going towards Haridwar in Uttarakhand. We laid a trap and nabbed him from Ghevra Mod," Sameer Sharma, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outer), said.
Lakra used to live on the fourth floor of the commercial building, and he managed to escape to the adjacent building along with his family members when the fire broke out, the police said.
Apart from Lakra, two company owners have also been arrested, said the DCP. He informed that the company was run on rent in the building and used to make CCTVs and 4G routers. He said the fire broke out during "sales motivation programme".
Regarding the casualties, the DCP said 27 people have died and eight have been identified so far. DNA samples have been collected and identification process is underway, he added. Besides, he informed that 27 people are still missing, out of which 21 are female and 7 are male.
Meanwhile, hitting out at Delhi government, the BJP alleged that Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's mishandling is responsible for the mishap and loss of lives in the Mundka fire.
The BJP also said that the devastating fire that claimed 27 lives could have been averted or contained had the fire tenders arrived on time.
In-charge of BJP's national information and technology department Amit Malviya tweeted, "The devastating fire in Mundka that claimed 27 lives could have been averted or contained had the fire tenders arrived on time. 1.5 hours delay is completely inexplicable. Arvind Kejriwal's mishandling is responsible for the mishap and loss of lives. He must be made accountable."
