Pitampura Fire: Malfunction in Automatic Door Locks Prevented From Escaping, Families Claim

New Delhi: After the shocking fire incident at a building in Delhi’s Pitampura, which claimed six lives on Thursday night, the family members of the victims alleged that the automatic locks installed in the doors of their residences prevented the victims from escaping from the building. The family claimed that the automatic lock got locked as fire broke out in the building.

It was on Thursday at around 8 pm in the evening that a fire broke out in a three-storey residential building in Northwest Delhi’s Pitampura. As per claims, the fire erupted from a room heater being used in the building by a family. The police are yet to confirm the exact cause of the fire.

Four women and two men died in the incident

Sunil Aggarwal, brother-in-law of the victim Rakesh Gupta said, "There are a total of four floors and all the floors have automatic door locks installed. These locks malfunctioned after the wirings of the lock caught fire due to the incident. Everyone got trapped inside and suffocated to death," reported news agency PTI.

Aggarwal said that they got a call about the death of his family members around 6 am, after which he and Rakesh’s brother Rajesh Gupta reached Ambedkar Hospital.

He said that Rakesh's son Sahil was just outside their residence when he noticed smoke in his house. He rushed towards it but could not get inside since it was locked from the inside.

Due to dense smoke at the spot, Sahil had to be rescued from the spot. He was sent to a hospital but was discharged after being given first aid.

Six people, from three families, including four women, died in the incident. One of the victims was employed as a cook in one of the houses. The victims have been identified as Rakesh Gupta (62), his wife Renu Gupta (62) and daughter Shweta (30), Shanu Verma (27), Kirti (25), and Santosh (25).

Santosh was employed as a cook for Shanu and Kirti who are sisters. He had reached the house at around 6 pm and was preparing food when the incident took place.

Police said that they are investigating the matter from every angle and forensic teams are collecting evidence from the spot.

Delhi Police has registered an FIR against unknown persons and started further investigation into the matter.

A case under relevant sections was registered at Maurya Enclave police station and an investigation has been initiated.