Police arrest owner of Sector 104 building where woman died in fire

On the evening of May 18, a massive fire erupted on the fourth floor of a newly inaugurated hotel in Hazipur in Sector 104, Noida. A 27-year-old woman died of asphyxiation while her 26-year-old friend was rushed to hospital for treatment for fume inhalation

Ten days after a 27-year-old woman died of suffocation in a fire at a hotel in Sector 104, Noida, the police on Wednesday arrested the owner of the building where the hotel was being operated on charges of culpable homicide, senior police officers said on Wednesday.

he suspect has been identified as Vimlendra Jha (40), a resident of Emerald Court apartments in Sector 93A, Noida. He is the owner of the six-storey building (above) where the fire broke out. (HT Archive)

On the evening of May 18, a massive fire erupted on the fourth floor of a newly inaugurated hotel in Hazipur in Sector 104, Noida. A 27-year-old woman died of asphyxiation while her 26-year-old friend was rushed to hospital for treatment for fume inhalation.

Following the incident, based on a complaint from the deceased woman’s brother, a case was registered against the unidentified accused and the hotel at the Sector 39 police station on May 19 under Section 304A (death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code.

However, officials informed on Wednesday that charges in the FIR have been changed from 304A to 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) on Tuesday, on the basis of a report submitted to the police by the fire department on Monday.

While section 304A is bailable offence with punishment extending up to two years, section 304 is non-bailable with punishment extending up to life imprisonment.

Vidya Sagar Mishra, deputy commissioner of police, Noida, said, “The suspect has been identified as Vimlendra Jha (40), a resident of Emerald Court apartments in Sector 93A, Noida. He is the owner of the six-storey building where the fire broke out. His name has been added into the FIR following investigation into the incident and the report submitted by the fire department.”

Officials said Jha had leased the building to a person identified as Akash Sharma on May 10, and Sharma was operating a hotel out of the building. The woman -- he name has been withheld by the police on request from the family -- and her friend, Tarun Kumar (26) a resident of Mayur Vihar, Phase 1, Delhi, checked in at the hotel on the day of the incident.

The DCP further said that while the hotel operator is on the run, Jha was arrested from his residence on Wednesday. “Sharma is also being traced by the police and will be nabbed soon,” he said.

According to Pradeep Kumar Chaubey, chief fire officer, the hotel did not have a no objection certificate (NOC) from the fire department, and had only temporary firefighting systems in the building.

“The fire broke out on the fourth floor of the six-floor hotel at 5pm. Several discrepancies have been found on the part of the hotel staffers and owners when the fire broke out. It was found that the fire department was informed at least half an hour after the fire broke out. Further, the hotel staff failed to alert the woman and her friend about the fire. They only became aware of the fire when smoke filled their room, which caused them to inhale the smoke,” said the officer.