Fire breaks out at Lajpat snooker joint, one dead

A 22-year-old man was charred to death after a fire broke out in the basement of a building which was used for playing snooker in Lajpat Nagar area of Southeast Delhi on Tuesday evening.

Fire Services official said that information about the fire in the basement of the building near Ring Road in Lajpat Nagar IV was received at around 5 pm. A fire tender rushed to the spot and controlled the blaze within a few minutes while the charred body of Dharmender was found lying there.

The police said that Dharmender was a caretaker of the snooker parlour and ran it along with his father. A table that was used for playing snooker had caught fire, they said, adding that the cause of the blaze was being investigated. Crime and Forensics team visited the basement of the building and collected items from the spot.

Foul play was suspected and investigation will cover all the possibilities, said a senior police officer. Luckily, no visitors were present in the basement during the time of incident.

“A case has been registered under section 304 A (causing death due to negligence) and investigation is underway,” said Additional DCP Rajiv Ranjan