A court here today set April 5 for submitting probe report in the case filed over devastating fire in the capital’s Chawkbazar on February 20, 2019.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Ashek Imam set the new date as the investigation officer failed to submit the report on Wednesday, reports BSS.
As many as 71 people were killed when the fire broke out at Wahed Mansion at Churihatta in Chawkbazar, spreading to the neighbouring buildings. Among the deceased, 67 were killed on the spot and four others later died in hospitals.
Also read: Police yet to press charges 2 years after Churihatta tragedy
A local named Asif filed the case against 14 people, including the two owners of the building - Md Hasan and Md Sohel alias Shahid - with Chawkbazar police station for causing loss of lives and properties by fire caused by negligence.
According to the case documents, two owners of Wahed Mansion, Md Hasan and his brother Sohel alias Shahid rented their house as godown of chemical and flammable materials for making extra profit, in spite of knowing about the risk of fire accidents.
Many probe bodies found that the fire had originated from the warehouse storing cosmetics, especially spray canisters, on the first floor of Haji Wahed Mansion.
Also read: One year of Chawkbazar inferno: Trauma still haunts survivors
The fire service officials also found that the basement of Haji Wahed Mansion – the first building to catch fire in Chawkbazar – housed flammable material that could have fuelled greater explosions. Similar stockpiles were also found in adjacent multi-storey buildings.
However, progress in the investigation of the case remains slow, with investigators pointing to the non-receipt of autopsy reports as the reason behind the failure in completing investigations.
