Hotel owner refused to cook fish, angry drunkards set fire, property worth Rs 7 lakh destroyed

Report: Sanjay Sinha
Aurangabad: A shocking incident came to light in Aurangabad, Bihar, where anti-social elements set the entire hotel on fire just for not cooking fish. The incident took place near Block Mod of Nagar police station area. The fire was so terrible that within a few minutes the hotel, the bed next to it and the property present there was burnt to ashes. The loss is estimated to be around Rs 7 lakh.

According to hotel operator Shivkumar Singh, some drunk youths came to his hotel on Monday evening and demanded to cook fish. At that time, he said that he was not able to cook fish due to running out of gas. As soon as they heard this, those youths left from there, threatening to “take a look” at them. The operator had no idea that this threat could prove to be so dangerous.

The fire was set around 4 am
Around 4 am on Tuesday, the family suddenly woke up to smoke and flames. The hotel and the adjacent hut were burning. The fire was so intense that within a short time e-rickshaws, bikes and many animals tied to cots were burnt to death. The operator’s wife got burnt in the flames, although she was taken out in time. Local people also reached the spot, but the speed of the fire was so fast that they did not get a chance to save anything. By the time the fire brigade team reached, most of the goods had been burnt.

FIR lodged
Director Shivkumar Singh has identified those youth and lodged a named FIR in the city police station. The police have now started searching for those accused and nearby CCTV footage is also being scrutinized. This incident has created both panic and anger among the people. Burning a hotel just because a minor demand is not met not only raises questions on law and order but is also a clear example of the courage and arbitrariness of such anti-social elements. The police are investigating the matter in depth and have assured that the culprits will be arrested soon.