Bawana fire: Apprehended man says he was running factory alone

New Delhi: A man who was apprehended by the police in connection with the Bawana fire accident that killed seventeen people and injured two, has said that he took the factory premises on rent and was running it alone. Ten women and seven men were killed while a man and woman were injured in a massive blaze at a firecracker storage unit in outer Delhi's Bawana industrial area yesterday evening. The fire, which started at the storage unit on the ground floor of a two-storey building, ripped through the structure, a Delhi Fire Services official said. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Rohini) Rajneesh Gupta said a person named Manoj Jain has been apprehended. Jain told police that he was running the factory alone and had taken it on rent. Earlier, the police had said that Jain was running the unit in partnership with one Lalit Goel. The police had said that an FIR has been registered under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections relating to culpable homicide not amounting to murder, and negligent conduct with respect to fire or combustible material. The maximum punishment under section 304 is 10 years. The Delhi government has ordered an inquiry into the blaze. While the fire department said the blaze occurred at a firecracker storage unit, the DCP had said they are yet to confirm this. He said it was a matter of investigation if firecrackers were being manufactured too.