Death, Survival, And Miraculous Escape: Fate Of 5 Brothers In Delhi Fire

Five brothers, one home, different fates. The fire tragedy in South Delhi's Palam claimed nine lives from one family. While two of the patriarch Rajendra Kashyap's sons died in the blaze, the other two suffered injuries during desperate attempts to escape the flames. One of his sons escaped physical harm because he was on a trip to Himachal Pradesh with his family, but returned to a devastated home and a family ripped apart by tragedy.

Kashyap, a businessman and the head of the local market committee, was in Goa when disaster struck and returned to find his home gutted and nine members across three generations dead. They included his wife, Lado, two sons, a daughter, two daughters-in-law and three granddaughters. Two of his sons are injured and in the hospital. The fire has sparked a political war of words and a conversation about fire safety norms and their non-compliance in the national capital. But for Kashyap and his family members who survived the flames, life is in shambles. They must now pick up the pieces.

Kamal, his wife Ashu and three daughters died in the fire

The Victims, And The Survivors

The victims of the fire tragedy, which struck early Wednesday morning, include Rajendra Kashyap's wife, Lado, (70), his son Kamal (38), Kamal's wife Ashu (35), their three daughters Niharika (15), Ivani (six) and Jaisika (three), Kamal's brother Parvesh (33), sister Himanshi (22) and Kamal's sister-in-law Deepika (28).

Three family members, who were in the house at the time of the fire, have survived with injuries. As the flames leapt high, Kashyap's son Anil made a desperate attempt to save his one-year-old daughter Mitali. Firefighters had arrived and were trying to reach the family members stuck on the third floor with a hydraulic platform.

Himanshi died in the fire, and her brother Sachin survived with burns

Eyewitnesses have said the ladder was not long enough and could not reach the third floor. Anil tried to lower his daughter to the platform so that she could live even if he did not, but dropped her in the chaos.

As the one-year-old fell towards the ground, the firefighters and local residents watched in horror. But the web of overhead wires proved to be a blessing in disguise. The wires broke her fall, and a firefighter tried to catch her. He missed, and she fell to the ground. The little one has suffered fractures in her legs, but survived.

Three generations killed in the fire: Lado, her daughter Himanshi and granddaughter Niharika

Anil, horrified that he had dropped his daughter, had jumped in a suicidal attempt to save her. On his way down, he hit his head on the fire engine and is now under treatment for head injuries.

Sachin, Kashyap's youngest son, jumped to an adjacent building to save himself and suffered 25 per cent burns. He, too, is under treatment.

A Holiday That Proved To Be A Miracle

At the time of the incident, four Kashyap brothers were home. The fifth, Sunil, was in Himachal Pradesh's Solan with his wife Gauri and their two sons. If not for the vacation plan, the couple and their two children would have probably ended up on the list of the dead or the injured.

The patriarch Kashyap, too, was away. Neighbours said he was in Goa for some work and rushed home after learning of the tragedy that had befallen his family.

Parvesh's wife, Kavita, and their one-year-old son, Vyom, survived the blaze too because they were at Kavita's maternal home in Bhagalpur.

It was a cruel twist of fate that saved Kashyap, Sunil, Gauri, Kavita and the three children. They escaped the tragedy unscathed but returned to a devastated home.

Two of Sunil's brothers -- Kamal and Parvesh -- are dead, and two others -- Anil and Sachin -- are injured. He has lost his mother, sister, two daughters-in-law and three nieces.

And for Kashyap, life has fallen apart. He has lost his life partner, Lado, their two sons, a daughter, two daughters-in-law and three grandchildren.

The ones who have survived now face a daunting task ahead: rebuilding their lives from scratch.

Before and after: The four-storey building where Kashyap lived and worked reduced to ashes

The Probe And The Politics

Outside the realm of the Kashyaps' personal loss, the Palam fire tragedy has yet again put the spotlight on how a large number of Delhi's residential neighbourhoods are nothing less than a tinderbox and a disaster waiting to happen.

It is suspected that a short circuit caused the fire in Palam. When NDTV visited the spot, it found a meter box with a danger sign on the ground floor of the building. The ground floor housed a shop and the first floor a godown. Kashyap lived with his five sons and their families on the second and third floors. The building has only one entry and exit, despite being used for commercial purposes.

Eyewitness accounts that claim a fire engine's hydraulic ladder did not open, and this delayed the rescue operation, have drawn a strong response from the opposition Aam Aadmi Party. Fire department officials, however, have said the ladder did not malfunction, but was not high enough to reach those stranded on the third floor.

AAP MP said the fire tragedy is "not an accident" but "murder". "Would you believe that in the national capital, Delhi, the fire brigade's ladder wouldn't open, and they didn't even have a net?" He also said Kashyap is a member of the AAP.

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has ordered a magisterial inquiry into the tragedy. And Lieutenant Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu has asked for a comprehensive fire audit of the national capital.