Close to a year after a fire in a residential building claimed five lives in Tilak Nagar, the police on Thursday arrested one of the two accused who were wanted in the case.
The blaze had broken out on December 27, 2018, in Sargam Society and had resulted in the deaths of Tarla Gangar (52), Laxmiben Gangar (83), Suman Joshi (83), Sunita Joshi (73), and Bhalchandra Joshi (83). Additionally, fireman Chhagan Valunj was injured during the rescue operation.
The police registered an offence of culpable homicide not amounting to murder against the developers after large-scale violations of fire safety and occupancy rules were found in the investigation.
According to the police, while one of the partners in the real estate firm, Mukesh Kothari, was arrested last year, Hemendra and Subhak Mapara, who had been summoned by court, had allegedly gone on the run.
“We received a tip-off that Mr. Subhak was in Valsad, Gujarat. We sent a team to Valsad to apprehend him. He was brought to Mumbai on Thursday and produced in court, after which he was remanded in police custody till November 6,” senior police inspector Sushil Kamble, Tilak Nagar police station, said.
The police are now interrogating Mr. Subhak to gain clues about Mr. Hemendra’s whereabouts.
