NEW DELHI: Two unidentified masked men attempted to set a house on fire in the national capital’s north-east area, a senior police officer said on Friday. No injuries or casualties were reported.
According to the official, the incident took place on the intervening night of January 8-9 in northeast Delhi’s Bhajanpura area.
“In the night, two to three people came and set a fire outside a house in Vijay Park, Bhajanpura. In the incident, one motorcycle and bicycle got damaged, however, no one was injured,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (northeast) Sanjay Kumar Sain said.
Accordingly, the police registered a case under sections 427 (Mischief causing damage) and 435 (Mischief by fire or explosive substance) of the Indian Penal Code at Bhajanpura police station and began probing the matter.
The official said the owner of the house, identified as Nafees Malik, and his family members did not suspect any enmity with someone who may have committed the crime. At the time of the incident, Malik and his family members were sleeping.
Malik told the police that he was sleeping on the first floor when he woke up and saw smoke inside his house around 2.30 am. Later, he came downstairs and saw that his motorcycle and bicycle had caught fire.
He said the police are currently analysing the CCTV footage of the incident to identify the suspects. “Special Wings have been roped in to assist the police station team to solve the case,” the official said.
In the video, two masked men are seen pouring what is believed to be a flammable fluid at the house’s main gate. One of them then sets fire to the gate.
Meanwhile, in the CCTV footage, accessed by this newspaper, two men could be seen throwing some inflammable liquid inside the house. At last one of them lit a matchstick and threw it inside the house which resulted in a fire.