The Anaj Mandi fire tragedy was “not an accident but a case of murder”, said BJP chief Manoj Tiwari on Monday. He also sought Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s resignation on moral grounds on account of the incident.
The North East Delhi MP announced the constitution of a five-member fact-finding committee to investigate the incident. “The committee will inquire the case independently and submit a report within a week. It will consist of retired High Court Judge Moolchand Garg, retired Law Secretary P.K. Malhotra, former Joint Secretary Dr. Yashpal Chandra Dangay and former joint CP Bhairo Singh Gurjar,” Mr. Tiwari said. He demanded that the family members of those who lost their lives be paid compensation of ₹1 crore each and the injured be paid ₹10 lakh each by the government.
“On hearing about the incident, the BJP members visited the place of incident...On one hand, Kejriwal was busy in ‘Badhai Timarpur’ and on the other, his Deputy was at a cultural event,” Mr. Tiwari alleged.
Owner of the factory Rehan was an AAP worker, Mr. Tiwari said, adding that the Labour Department“never checked” the building. The MP also raised questions on the Power Department.
Mr. Tiwari said in 2017, it was declared a redevelopment area with a file to this effect allegedly pending with the government.
AAP National Spokesperson Raghav Chadha said: “People from the area are saying that Rehan is allegedly the parliamentary representative of Mr. Tiwari. I would request him [Tiwari] to clarify his relationship with him.” The party also said the BJP-run civic bodies are responsible to check on such illegal factories.
