Arson, not accident

kolkata: senior kolkata police officials said on thursday that the biswaroopa fire was a case of arson, and not an accident. our initial investigation based on apparent observations reveal that the historic stage was set ablaze, deputy commissioner (detective department) soumen mitra said. the state government had asked for forensic tests to be completed before deciding on forming a probe committee, chief minister buddhadeb bhattacharjee added.two persons — real estate promoter ramesh chandra bothra and guard of the theatre jagdish mahato — have been arrested. although the hall had been closed for four years, ample evidence had been found that people were living inside. while the door was under lock-and-key and the shutters were down, a number of openings had been created by breaking through the walls. we have found a number of used mattresses and pillows, fire service minister pratim chatterjee said. the fire brigade has submitted its report, and the police report will come in on friday. we will have to wait for the forensic report to decide whether it is necessary to probe the incident further, bhattacharjee said at the secretariat. initial investigation revealed that the current lease-holder of the theatre, located on a prime 54-cottah plot, was jayanti mishra of raja basanta roy road. after the fire, bothra's associate ashoke agarwala remained untraced. the police found bothra's bandana real estate pvt ltd office on armenian lane locked from outside. pratim chatterjee's statements indicated that there was a strong suspicion of foul play in the fire. we received the news at 1.25 am, and five engines reached the spot within 10 minutes. but by then, the fire had spread all over. my officers have told me that they believe the news reached them late, otherwise the fire could not have spread so much, he said. since these old buildings did not have much iron content as supporting material, and were mostly made of brick and mortar, such fires damaged the entire structure, he added. chatterjee felt that much of the damage could have been prevented if the mob which had gathered did not obstruct the firefighters. a number of our fire engines and firemen were led into a small bylane and held there for quite some time. many of our men were injured in scuffles. a lot of expensive equipment have been stolen and damaged, he said. this was not the first time that the fire brigade was hampered in its duty. even when rangmahal theatre was up in flames, a crowd stopped us from getting on with the work. do these people have a vested interest in destroying these buildings? chatterjee wondered. the fire brigade has lodged an fir with the burtola police station. these people must be brought to book, he said.