Delhi hotel fire: Owner’s aide, accountant Jay Mishra surrenders before court, sent to police custody

Jay Mishra, an accused in the south Delhi hotel fire that killed 22 people, on Monday surrendered before a court here and was sent to police custody for two days, officials said.

A close associate and accountant of hotel owner Lavkesh Bajaj, Mishra surrendered before the Judicial Magistrate Bhanu Pratap Singh and was formally arrested by the Delhi police.

According to police, Mishra had been booked earlier too, in 2024, in connection with the absence of a security apparatus in the hotel. The FIR was registered under section 223 (Causes danger to human life, health, or safety) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Police also said that key hotel documents were in the name of Mishra.

The police, while seeking the custody of the hotel owner last week, contended before the court that Bajaj’s custody was needed to trace, locate and apprehend Mishra and Rakesh, the hotel manager, as their roles had come under scrutiny in the preliminary probe.

Several other individuals connected with the establishment have also been detained and are being questioned as part of the ongoing investigation into the fire at Flourish Stays Bed and Breakfast in Malviya Nagar’s Hauz Rani area on June 4.

According to police sources, Mishra has known Bajaj for nearly a decade and worked as a frontman for several of his business interests while also handling financial and accounting matters.

Investigators believe he played a key role in the day-to-day functioning of the hotel and are examining the extent of his involvement in its management, licensing, finances and operational decisions.

Multiple police teams were formed to conduct raids in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar to trace him.

Police had earlier questioned hotel owner Bajaj, who is in custody, regarding the property’s ownership structure, finances, safety compliance and operational practices.

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During questioning, Bajaj allegedly told investigators that he had delegated the hotel’s operations to Mishra.

Officers are scrutinising documents, financial records and other business transactions to determine who was responsible for the hotel’s functioning and whether mandatory safety norms were ignored.

The investigation has already led to the arrest of the hotel’s 65-year-old cook, Keshav Negi, who was produced before a court and remanded to police custody. According to investigators, Negi was preparing food when the fire broke out.

The blaze claimed 22 lives, including that of a 16-year-old girl, and 12 foreign nationals from countries such as Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Iraq, Congo, Mozambique and Liberia.

Police have booked Bajaj under the charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder.