: Monday, March 23, 2026 5:37 PM
New Delhi . Delhi Home Minister Ashish Sood gave a statement in the Delhi Assembly regarding the Palam fire incident. He told the Speaker that you have given me an opportunity to express my views on a very burning, very important and painful issue of Delhi and to put that issue here in the House regarding the development taking place in every segment of Delhi’s infrastructure under the leadership of Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and the way the government is moving forward with firm administrative steps under the leadership of the Chief Minister. He said that I express deep sorrow over the fire incident. I pray for the salvation of those who lost their lives in this incident and those who have lost their family members, I stand with them in this hour of grief, the entire government under the leadership of the Chief Minister stands with them. Before I give my views on this incident in a systematic manner, I want to place on the table of the House with great responsibility that on the day that incident occurred, the entire government stood with the victims of that incident with full responsibility. Ashish Sood said that in less than two hours after the report of the incident came, the Chief Minister called for a magisterial inquiry and announced ex-gratia for the dead and injured. The post mortem should be done on time, their families should get their bodies, for all this the Chief Minister himself gave instructions to me and others. We all were working with awareness on that subject and were with the family in their hour of grief. I myself was there for about one and a half to two hours at the Mangalapuri crematorium on the instructions of the Chief Minister to share the grief with the family of the deceased. The most painful thing is when an attempt is made to do politics over the dead bodies. Vulture politics is done, vulture politics is done, that moment is the most painful.
He further said that in this context, police investigation is going on, fire investigation is going on and I will also read some facts before you in that entire incident, but before that, as you said, such an important topic is going to be discussed and the opposition is out. This shows his attitude. He knew that when the discussion would take place here, the irresponsible behavior of the opposition in the last 11 years would also come to the fore, hence, instead of accepting his responsibility, he thought it best to stay out of the House.
Ashish Sood said that in January 2018, a huge fire broke out in Bawana Industrial Area, 17 people lost their lives. The government of that time put the responsibility on the licensing department of MCD, saying that the fire was caused by the licensing department. At that time there was BJP in MCD. After that, in February 2019, there was a fire in Arpit Hotel Karol Bagh and then 17 people died, and the then government tried to escape from that responsibility by blaming the MCD by saying that there is corruption in the NOC process.
He said that in 2019, a fire broke out in the grain market, 43 people lost their lives. It was said that ‘Special Area Redevelopment Plan’ was not made, hence the fire broke out. In May 2022, a fire broke out in Mundka Industrial Area. 27 people lost their lives. If the Leader of Opposition was sitting here, I would have reminded her. Leader of Opposition and Aam Aadmi Party MLA and leader Durgesh Pathak said that this building belongs to a BJP leader, the fire broke out and BJP is responsible. By taking responsibility for the fire that resulted in the death of 27 people, the Delhi government looked towards playing politics. We don’t play vulture politics. None of us said that that building belonged to an Aam Aadmi Party leader.
Ashish Sood said that no one tried to do blame politics in Delhi government. The Chief Minister immediately announced a magisterial inquiry and declared ex-gratia within the first two hours. We did not say that there was inflammable material in the basement of the Aam Aadmi Party leader. This is a way of passing the buck. This attitude will continue in the Aam Aadmi Party government. We fulfill our responsibility by taking responsibility from now on in Rekha Gupta’s government.
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Web Title-Palam Fire Incident: Ashish Sood Statement — The BJP Government Did Not Attempt Blame Politics
