Two men lost their lives after a massive fire broke out at Vishal Mega Mart in Central Delhi’s Karol Bagh area on Friday evening, the Delhi Police said.
One of the victims, 25-year-old Kumar Dhirender Pratap, a native of Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh, was found dead inside a lift, suspected to have died of suffocation. His body was recovered by rescue teams at around 2:30 am on Saturday.
Later, during cooling operations, firefighters discovered another charred male body from the building. Authorities are working to confirm the identity of the second victim.
A senior police officer revealed that Dhirender had sent distress messages to his elder brother at 6:51 pm, saying, “I am stuck in the lift at Karol Bagh Mega Mart,” followed by a final message: “I am short of breath now; please do something.” There were no further messages after that.
“My brother had gone to Vishal Mega Mart to shop in the evening. At 6:51 pm, I received a WhatsApp message from him saying he was trapped in the lift and struggling to breathe,” said Vikram, the victim’s brother.
Dhirender’s sister, Dr Swati, expressed anguish, saying, “My brother is gone, but their mall will reopen. People use lifts with trolley bags every day in malls. Why did no one check if anyone was inside? They turned off the power and left. Their store will be repaired, but my brother won’t come back.”
Police said they were alerted to the fire at 6:44 pm on Friday, which had erupted on the second floor of the four-storey commercial building located on Padam Singh Road.
“This is a Vishal Mega Mart outlet where grocery and fabric items are sold. The fire was mainly confined to the second floor,” the police statement noted.
According to Delhi Fire Service (DFS) officials, a total of 13 fire tenders and around 90 firefighters were deployed to tackle the blaze. The firefighting effort was prolonged due to inadequate ventilation inside the premises.
While the exact cause of the fire has not yet been confirmed, preliminary investigations suggest a suspected short circuit. Police said a case under relevant sections is likely to be registered, and a detailed investigation is currently underway.