VILLUPURAM: Police on Thursday filed a case against the owner of the firecracker shop that caught fire and claimed seven lives at Sankarapuram on Tuesday night for allegedly illegally storing crackers and selling them. Nine more people, including shop owner S Selvaganabathy (52), sustained injuries. His mother Valliammal and 11-year-old nephew M Dhanabal are among the deceased persons. The Sankarapuram police filed a case and inquired further.
Police found he did not follow safety protocols properly, stocked firecrackers on the first floor of the building, and also sold country crackers illegally. Based on the first phase of the inquiry, a case was filed against Selvaganabathy under five sections of the Indian Penal Code, said police from Sankarapuram.
Sources further said police are waiting for his discharge from the hospital for further action, including his arrest. Selvaganabathy is Kallakurichi district’s secretary of Bharatiya Janata Party, added sources. Meanwhile, police sealed firecracker shops and seized crackers worth lakhs of rupees in Villupuram and Kallakurichi districts on Thursday.
In Villupuram, Collector D Mohan and Superintendent of Police N Shreenatha inspected firecrackers shops in the Villupuram town area.