'Who Is Responsible For The Fire': Blame-Game Over Delhi Hospital Tragedy As BJP Probes AAP

Politics has erupted over the massive fire that broke out at a children’s hospital in the Vivek Vihar area of East Delhi on Saturday night and claimed the lives of seven newborns.

The Delhi Fire Services (DFS) earlier today said it received a call at 11.32 pm and nine fire tenders were rushed to the site. Officials said that 12 newborns were rescued from the building. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has hit out at the AAP government, asking who is responsible for the latest fire tragedy in the national capital.

“I reached the spot of the incident in Vivek Vihar, Delhi and expressed my condolences to the families affected by this heart-wrenching incident. We are with you in this hour of immense grief. I demand from the administration to help the bereaved families and investigate the matter and take action,” Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva said in a post on the microblogging website X.

‘Quick enquiry’

Delhi Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj today sparked controversy when he stated that he first heard about the incident through media reports. Bharadwaj mentioned attempting to contact the Health Secretary several times but received no response. He called for a prompt investigation and directed authorities to swiftly identify those responsible for the negligence.

“Though, this incident occurred around 11:30 pm on 25.5.2024, I got to know about this incident through a media flash in the morning of 26.5.2024. I have tried calling Secretary (Health) multiple times and left him many wattsapp messages but he has not responded yet. Therefore, I visited the incident spot alone,” the Delhi Minister said in a social media post on Sunday morning.

“As I am not able to communicate with the Secretary (Health) who heads the Department of Health, I am sending this note with a copy to Cheif Secretary so that quick enquiry can be launched in this matter. You are directed to ensure the following,” he added. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also commented on the issue saying, “Very unfortunate incident reported. I have asked Secretary (Health) to update about the current situation. Culprits will not be spared. Strictest punishment will be ensured for those found negligent or involved in any wrong doing.”

FIR against Naveen Chinchi

Meanwhile, the Delhi Police has filed an FIR against Naveen Chinchi, the proprietor of Baby Care New Born Hospital, under IPC sections 336, 304A, and 34. Investigations are underway to determine if the hospital possessed a fire NOC. The owner of the hospital is reportedly absconding. Lt Governor VK Saxena has separately directed Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar to “institute an inquiry” into the east Delhi hospital fire.

“A fire call from Baby Care Centre, near ITI, Block B of Vivek Vihar area was received. A total of nine fire tenders were dispatched,” said DFS chief Atul Garg. “It was a very tough operation. We made two teams. One team started firefighting because there was a blast of cylinders, we can say the chain of blast of cylinders. So we had to save ourselves also. We started rescue operations for babies as well. Unfortunately, we could not save all the children. We removed all the twelve babies to the hospital. But after arrival, they declared that 6 were dead. That is a regrettable incident,” the DFS chief said.

(With agency inputs)

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