Fire erupts in south Mumbai high-rise, extinguished after 3 hours
Mumbai (PTI): A fire broke out in a 62-storey residential building in south Mumbai's Byculla area around midnight, officials said on Sunday.
The blaze erupted in a flat on the 10th floor of the Monte South building's A wing in the Khatao Mill Compound in Byculla at 11.42 pm on Saturday, an official said, adding smoke filled the entire floor.
No casualty was reported, while 25 to 30 persons were rescued through the staircase, a fire official said.
The blaze was extinguished at 2.45 am, he said.
It was a "level-2" blaze which was confined to the electric wiring and installations, wooden furniture, household articles, wardrobe, mattresses, wooden beds, sofas, curtains, electronic appliances, false ceilings, doors, windows and modular kitchen of the 10th floor flat and curtains, window glass, etc of an apartment on the 11th floor, the official said.
While firefighting, an explosion of a refrigerator compressor occurred in the kitchen of the 10th floor flat, he said.
Eight water tankers and six fire engines were involved in the firefighting operations, the official said.
The cause of the blaze is not yet known. There were reports that the blaze erupted after suspected short-circuit in one of the flats on the 10th floor of the tower.
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Advocate found dead in car on Nainital court premises
Nainital (PTI): A 55-year-old advocate allegedly died by suicide after shooting himself inside his car at the Nainital district court parking lot here on Monday, police said.
According to the police, Puran Singh Bhakuni, a resident of Mallital, was found in the rear seat of his vehicle with a gunshot wound to his temple.
Police recovered a licensed pistol from his hand and a suicide note from the car’s dashboard. The note stated that Bhakuni was unwell and suffering from depression.
"We received information through lawyers around noon. The deceased was lying in the back seat with a pistol in his hand and blood near his ear," Circle Officer Anjana Negi said.
Forensic teams and ballistic experts reached the spot to collect evidence, as no witness reported hearing the gunshot.
Government counsel Sushil Sharma stated that Bhakuni left home at 9 am and was found dead at 9.30 am.
Sharma raised concerns over the circumstances, noting that the body was in the rear seat, and demanded a thorough probe to rule out foul play. Bhakuni, who worked as a notary, had married six months ago, he said.
Police took the body into custody and sent it for a postmortem to confirm the cause of death.
The forensic laboratory will examine the suicide note and the ballistics of the weapon, the police said, adding that the investigation is ongoing.
