Garment shop gutted, owner suspects relative’s hand

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, June 21

A garment shop at Jagraon, near here, was gutted in a fire that broke out under mysterious circumstances around 11.30 pm on Wednesday night. The shop, Sabharwal Cloths, is situated near the Nehru Market area on Lajpat Rai Road.

As soon as the fire broke out at the shop, the local residents informed the shop owner, Vijay Kumar Sabharwal, about it. Vijay, along with members of his family and relatives, arrived at the spot, only to find that the fire had engulfed the entire shop.

Vijay immediately informed the fire brigade. Soon, a fire engine reached the spot. It took the fire brigade around two hours to douse the fire. The fire was controlled before it could spread on to the shops located on both sides of the garment shop.

The exact cause of the fire is yet to be established. The shop owner has lodged a complaint with the police. He suspects his shop was set on fire by a nearby shopkeeper who also happens to be his relative. According to Vijay, all garments stocked in the shop and the furniture were destroyed by the fire. He claimed he suffered a loss of about Rs 12 lakh.

Inspector Inderjit Singh Boparai, Jagraon SHO, confirmed that the shop owner had alleged that his shop was set on fire by one of his relatives with whom he had been in some kind of dispute for the past some time.

“The matter is under investigation. We have recorded the statements of both sides and further investigation is on. We are also trying to establish the actual cause of fire and appropriate action will be taken after verifying all aspects,” said the SHO.