Kamala Mills blaze: 3 accused remanded in custody till Jan 25

Three people, who were arrested on Saturday in connection with the fire at a pub in the Kamala Mills compound here that claimed 14 lives, have been sent to police custody till January 25.

The NM Joshi Marg police had arrested Ravi Bhandari, a partner in the Kamala Mills, station fire officer Rajendra Patil, and Utkarsh Pandey, the owner of Nirvana Hookah, in connection with the incident.

The three were produced before the Bhoiwada court which remanded them in police custody till January 25, senior police inspector Ahmed Pathan said.

The arrests were made after Brihanmumbai Municipal Commissioner (BMC) Ajoy Mehta submitted his report to Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis in which he mentioned factors which caused the tragedy last month.

The owners of the 1Above pub — Jigar Sanghvi, Kripesh Sanghvi and Abhijit Mankar, as well as owners of the adjoining Mojo’s Bistro, Yug Pathak and Yug Tulli, have already been arrested.

According to the report submitted by Mehta, the fire on December 29 started because of the flying charcoal embers from hookah which was illegally served at Mojo’s Bistro. It then spread to 1 Above.

Most of the deceased were visiting 1 Above.

The owners of both the pubs were booked for ‘culpable homicide not amounting to murder’ and other offences under the Indian Penal Code.

The report also said the owners of Kamala Mills allowed illegal alterations and the use of the terrace. It also said that a departmental inquiry will be conducted against fire brigade officials.

MUMBAI: