A massive fire ripped through a coaching centre in the Aliganj (Purainia) neighbourhood of Lucknow on Monday, killing 15 people and leaving several others injured. Hours after firefighters brought the blaze under control, the building was still too hot to approach safely, smoke continued to billow from its structure, and cooling operations remained ongoing. Eyewitnesses reported that many people were forced to leap from the building to save their lives, while others were trapped amid the smoke and flames. The tragedy has triggered furious reactions from the state's chief minister and pushed the matter before the State Human Rights Commission, throwing a harsh spotlight on failures in fire safety oversight and administrative accountability.
Building Sealed, Forensic Team Reaches the Scene
Lucknow Police sealed the fire-ravaged building in the Aliganj police station area. An FSL forensic team reached the site and the fire brigade has been collecting evidence. Of the 15 people killed in the blaze, post-mortem procedures for 14 bodies have been completed, and 13 bodies have been handed over to the families of the deceased.
Three Arrested Under Culpable Homicide Charges
Police registered an FIR at Aliganj police station under sections relating to culpable homicide (gair-iradatan manavadh) and moved swiftly to arrest three key accused. The first, building owner Virendra Prasad Shukla, is accused of constructing and maintaining the premises in flagrant violation of safety regulations. The second, Dr. Ramkrishna Upadhyay, ran the "Aliganj Pet Shop & Clinic" on the ground floor without meeting the standards required by law. The third, Tushak Krishna Jaiswal, operated "Hexa Three D Animation" and "Head Hoopers Institute" on the upper floors of the building. All three face serious charges of running illegal commercial activities and of endangering the lives of 15 children.
Case Reaches State Human Rights Commission
The case has now reached the State Human Rights Commission. Dr. Gajendra Singh Yadav, an advocate at the Allahabad High Court and a human rights researcher, filed a formal complaint with the body. He called on the commission to seek detailed reports from the district administration, police and the fire department. His complaint also demands an inquiry into whether the building and the coaching institute held a valid fire NOC and all other necessary permissions, and whether the National Building Code (NBC) and fire safety regulations were being followed on the premises.
Dr. Gajendra Singh Yadav stated that if neglect of safety norms is established, the incident would constitute not merely an accident but a serious violation of citizens' fundamental right to life and dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution. He laid out three key demands: legal and departmental action against any officer, building owner or manager found to be negligent; adequate compensation and rehabilitation support for the families of the deceased and for the injured; and a special fire safety audit of all coaching institutes, hostels and multi-storey commercial buildings across the state so that such tragedies are not repeated.
CM Yogi Adityanath Loses Patience at Officials: If This Is Lucknow, What of the Rest?
Sources say CM Yogi Adityanath expressed fierce anger during a meeting with senior officials and delivered sharp reprimands. He asked how the state's other cities and towns could be considered safe if the capital Lucknow itself showed such glaring failures in fire safety compliance. He also put the fire department directly on the spot, asking how many surveys it had conducted to date and how many buildings had been inspected.
LDA Constitutes a Five-Officer Special Probe Team
LDA Vice Chairman Prathamesh Kumar has constituted a five-member special team to investigate the fire incident. The team will be headed by Gyanendra Verma and includes KK Gautam, Manavendra Singh, Manoj Sagar and Ravinandan Singh. These five LDA officers will carry out a comprehensive and detailed examination of every aspect of the incident.
