Proximity to Max Hospital was B&B’s main selling point. Most killed in blaze were patients, attendants

Fire officials said a preliminary examination of documents suggested property did not have fire licence. Detailed assessment of licences & approvals underway. Police is on lookout for owner.

The B&B's main selling point was its proximity to an upmarket south Delhi hospital | Suraj Singh Bisht | ThePrint

New Delhi: Proximity to the upmarket Max Hospital in south Delhi’s Saket was the main selling point of the Flourish Stays B&B where a massive fire killed 21 people Wednesday morning.

Most posts on social media by owners and managers of the hotel promoted the fact that it was just a few metres from the flagship Max Hospital. On about two dozen posts on the hotels’ social media page, the property owners reached out to prospective guests, telling them that the best part about the property was its location, “just five minutes from Max Hospital Saket”.

The B&B, over four floors, was mostly used by patients receiving treatment at the hospital and their attendants. Consequently, a majority of those who died in the fire were either patients or their attendants, according to fire officials.

Sources in the Delhi Police identified the owner of the property as Lovkesh Bajaj, who registered the property with the GST department in August 2023. Sources said multiple teams have been formed to arrest the accused.

According to Delhi Cabinet Minister Ashish Sood, the property, located near Max Hospital, was registered with the Delhi government under its bed and breakfast scheme. However, the details of the licences granted to the hotel, and the number of rooms the hotel was allowed for commercial use, are under investigation.

Sood further said the hotel’s owner should be arrested soon. The Delhi Police, meanwhile, has registered an FIR against unknown suspects under several sections, including 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 326 (mischief with fire or explosives) of the BNS, 2023, Southern Range Joint CP, Vijay Kumar told ThePrint.

Highlighting the situation inside the property, sources in the Delhi Fire Services said people were found trapped in rooms, including the two rooms in the basement of the property. “There were people all around the property and on all floors,” a fire service department official said.

The official further said that the preliminary examination of the documents suggested the property had not been granted a fire licence. However, a detailed assessment of the licences and approvals from the authorities is still pending.

(Edited by Viny Mishra)