NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Monday granted bail to the cook arrested by Delhi Police in a case related to the Malviya Nagar hotel fire in which 22 people were killed on June 3.
Additional sessions judge Samar Vishal granted relief to Kesar Negi, who was arrested by Delhi Police more than a month ago in the case. The judge said the accused was no longer required for further investigation.
The judge was hearing Negi’s application against a magisterial court order passed on June 8, denying him bail.
Negi, who hails from Uttarakhand, alleged that he was being made a scapegoat for systemic safety failures and statutory violations of the proprietors of the property. His counsel claimed that he was charged with serious offences even though “he was the one who tried to douse the fire”.
He claimed that he was a salaried chef at the hotel with no control over its fire-safety infrastructure. The plea added that “like any other man of prudence, he had turned off the electricity switches after realising that the fire was caused by an electrical fault.”