Rituraj Hotel blaze: Cops arrest owner, manager and contractor

Kolkata: Three persons — one of the owners of Rituraj Hotel, the contractor involved in designing the bar and lounge and one manager of the hotel — have been arrested in the past 48 hours on charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder. Police alleged their criminal negligence caused the fire at the six-storey hotel at Mechhua, which killed 14 people on Tuesday night.The police arrested hotel owner Akash Chawla early Thursday morning. The hotel manager, Gaurav Kapoor, who was detained on Wednesday, was also taken into custody around the same time. Both are residents of Howrah. The third arrest came on Thursday evening when Khurshid Alam, the contractor overseeing the renovation work, was picked up from his residence in Karaya.The arrests came in the wake of the forensic experts indicating that the fire may have been led from cooking on the first floor for the workers. They believe the fire spread rapidly due to the presence of stored plywood and spirit-based inflammables.During the court proceedings at Bankshall court on Thursday, the prosecution presented evidence of severe safety violations at the hotel. The prosecution lawyer highlighted the absence of emergency exits and functional fire safety equipment. Investigation revealed the hotel's fire licence expired in 2022 and wasn't renewed thereafter. "Both the owner and the manager were aware that there were several lacunae in the hotel," the prosecution's lawyer told the additional chief judicial magistrate's court. Both accused were sent to police custody till May 8.Akash Chawla's defense lawyer argued that his client wasn't involved in day-to-day operations. Similarly, Gaurav Kapoor's legal representative maintained that his client was merely an employee without decision-making authority. Both pleaded for bail, which was subsequently denied. The forensic team's preliminary report indicated that unauthorized cooking activities on the first floor, where renovation work was underway, might have contributed to the fire. The report also noted that one of the staircases was sealed off for renovation, leaving only one escape route for the trapped occupants. Investigators discovered that Khurshid Alam employed several workers for the renovation project without proper safety protocol.A KMC buildings department team visited the spot on Friday and took stock of some constructions that were carried out without sanction . "We sent to see to what extent rules were flouted by the hotel. Our team has collected evidence, and they will submit a report," said a senior KMC buildings department official."Considering the nature and gravity of the alleged offence, and the nascent stage of investigation, the prayer for bail is rejected at this stage and the prayer for police remand is allowed till May 8, with a hope that the investigating officer shall unearth substantial material against the accused persons," the order stated.Police revealed they were investigating whether the hotel had the necessary permits to operate after its fire licence expired. They are particularly interested in examining the ownership transfer of the first-floor bar following the death of its previous owner, Vivek Chawla.