Delhi Tughlaqabad fire: Man escapes flames, runs back for family; never returns

NEW DELHI: Pankaj Kumar Pandey had escaped from the burning building in Tughlaqabad when he realised that his family was still inside. He ran back in, and never made it out.The 28-year-old had a mobile phone shop and was the main earner in his family.

He lived with his mum, two sisters and maternal grandmother.Two years ago, Pankaj bought the flat in Tughlaqabad so that they could finally have a home.Pankaj, his grandmother Sushila Devi, and sister Soni, lost their lives in the blaze Friday. His mother, Guddi, and younger sister, Moni, are critical.Pankaj had lost his father a few years ago and taken on the responsibility of supporting the family and caring for his sisters.One of his relatives, Bam Bam Jha, told TOI that he had spoken to the family over a video call a few hours before the fire started. They chatted about routine stuff. “Around 6am, I called up Pankaj and others in the family. No one answered. I became anxious after some time and came to Tughlaqabad. There was a huge crowd outside the building. I learnt about the tragedy then,” Jha said. Jha’s wife Anshu broke down as relatives and neighbours arrived.

“It was horrific. My family is gone,” she wept.Another relative, Suresh Chandra Pandey, said when Pankaj purchased the modest two-room flat, he “advised him against it because the area is too congested, but he was determined to have a house of his own for the family”.One of Pankaj’s relatives had died in Gonda, Uttar Pradesh, on Thursday. Pankaj was to travel there on June 17. “Before he could leave, this happened,” Suresh said.The family used to live in Pul Prahladpur before moving to Tughlaqabad. The older of the two sisters, Soni, was a graduate and worked in a boutique. Moni, the younger one, had recently finished Class X.Residents said when Pankaj realised that his mother, sisters and grandmother could be trapped inside, he ran back in without thinking twice. “That’s when he got trapped,” a resident said.Seventy-year-old Sushila, Pankaj’s maternal grandmother, had been staying with her daughter, Guddi, as she was unable to speak due to health complications and required constant care. Now, as Guddi battles for life along with Moni, the rest of the family is gone.The future that Pankaj had worked so hard to build has been reduced to ashes.