The Kumbalgodu police have registered a case of culpable homicide against the deceased and the landlord of the deodorant unit in a residential area in Ramasandra, following the explosion owing to an accidental fire which killed three and injured five others on Sunday .
Two of the deceased have been identified as Saleem, 38, a resident of Magadi Road and owner of the unit, and Mahboob Pasha, 32, a resident of Chandra Layout and driver of a goods vehicle. The identity of the third victim is yet to be ascertained, a police officer said.
According to the police, the injured Sajid Pasha, 15, Rehan, 10, Afroz, 28, Irfan Pasha, 28, and Allah Baksh, 32, have been sent to Victoria Hospital. Rehan suffered 62% third-degree burns and is being treated in the ICU of the burns ward of Victoria Hospital.
A probe revealed that Saleem rented the property from Vittal to run the unit a month ago. The accused had lied about the unit operating in the residential area to the authorities concerned, following which they have been booked under cheating and forgery, a police officer said.
The probe revealed that Irfan and Afroz Pasha were working in another factory and quit the job one week ago to join Saleem’s unit for a salary hike. The duo were staying close to the factory. The severely injured Rehan, a high school student, had gone to give lunch to Irfan along with Afroz and others as it was a Sunday.
While they were talking to Irfan, the explosion occurred and they sustained injuries. Saleem, Mahboob, and another person who was inside the unit could not come owing to a lack of space, and a series of explosions followed by fire engulfed the unit. The trio were charred to death so badly that it was difficult to identify them, a senior police officer said.
The police are now awaiting the FSL report to ascertain the cause of fire. “The explosion was owing to chemicals formed in the compact structure due to the crushing of deodorant cans. However, it is not clear what triggered the explosion,” a police officer said.
