A devastating fire that originated at Gulshan-1 DCC market in the early of Tuesday gutted nearly 600 shops and led to an estimated loss of worth Tk 100 crore.
The businessmen alleged the fire was an act of ‘sabotage’ which carried out to evict them from the market.
The people, mainly office-goers, patients and children faced unbearable sufferings due to long-tailback created in the area centering the fire incident.
“We stopped the traffic for the safety and security of the commuters and smooth rescue operation by fire service department,” Ferdousi Rahman, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, Gulshan Zone, told The New Nation on Tuesday night.
He admitted that commuters and motorists had to face unexpected delay in passing through the Gulshan roads due to lack of alternative roads or diversions.
While paying a spot visit to the area, it was found that rescue vehicles kept on roads adjacent to the Gulshan-1 intersection for rescue operation halting the traffic.
“No casualty was reported so far in the incident and reason behind of the blaze also could not be known immediately,” said Samar Chandra Biswas, Deputy Director of the Fire Service and Civil Defense (FSCD).
Major Shakil Newaj, Director (Operation and Maintenance) of Fire Service and Civil Defence headquarters, told media that 22 units of firefighters brought the fire under control partially around 7:00pm.
Hours after the incident, traders claimed that the fire was a pre-planned incident which was backed by the authorities of Metro Group and Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) to evict them from the market centering a long dispute over the market establishment.
National Human Rights Commission Chairman Kazi Reazul echoed with the businessmen and said, “It needs to be verified whether it was an act of sabotage or accident. People are not fools. These types of fire incidents are happening in suspicious frequency.”
However, the DNCC Mayor Annisul Huq rejected the fire incident as sabotage or planned incident claiming that it might be originated from an electrical malfunction.
Replying a query on allegations of sabotage, he said, “The mayor cannot say it, the mayor is no sabotage expert. But I think the possibility of not being sabotage is 99 per cent.”
Quoting the witnesses, FSCD Director Shakil Newaj, said “About 22 teams of fire service and naval force rushed to the spot following information around 2:30am and took partial control on flames around 7:00pm.”
“The unavailability of a nearby water source has made it hard for them to work. Firefighters had to connect their hoses to as far as the Gulshan Lake, Hatirjheel and local houses,” the director said.
Around 600 shops, including food products, apparels, cosmetics, ornaments, toys and electronics, were gutted while a part of the building has been collapsed during fire incident.
Later, the firemen and shopkeepers removed a number of gas cylinders stored behind the kitchen market.
“It seems to be the fire has been caused by an electrical malfunction. We are yet to receive any reports on casualties,” he said.
A five-member probe body has been formed, led by Mosharaf Hossain, Director (Panning and Development) of the FSCD to investigate into the fire incident, said Debashis Bardhan, Deputy Director (Operation) of fire service headquarters.
The Committee has been asked to submit the report within five working days, he said.
The fire originated from the south side of the market around 2:00am, said Nur Mohammad, security guard of the Gulshan DNCC Kitchen market.
“The fire spread to the southern part in a few minutes. Then, I screamed and shouted,” he said.
Another security guard of the market Matiur Rahman said, “I was with Nur when the fire broke out. We both tried to extinguish the blaze but failed. Later we informed fire service.”
Abu Taleb Babul, the market committee president, claimed, “Some miscreants might have set fire to the market.”
Wailing over his loss, businessman Nurul Islam said: “It is only a two-storied building with main roads all around and lakes nearby. Why it is taking them so long to douse the flames?”
Sher Mohammad, President of DNCC Kutcha Market Businessmen’s Association, alleged that the fire was an act of sabotage. “We are sure, that this was an act of sabotage.”
Some City Corporation officials and the Metro Group are involved in this sabotage, he alleged.
Shop Owners’ Association Secretary Abul Kashem said that the authorities must allocate them new plots otherwise they we will take to the street.
“We are 100 percent sure that gunpowder was used to set fire to the market, otherwise, the building would not have collapsed. Metro Group is involved in the arson attack. They are trying to build a new establishment here and got the tender for the construction in 2010,” he said.
The owner of a store named Sports Quality in the Paka Market, Md Bilal Hossain, said “Metro Group won a contract to build a new building on the land. Two filing cases’ decisions are pending with the High Court.”
Local MP AKM Rahmatullah said, “We will sit with the shop owners and city corporation officials to form a probe body in this regard.” Inspector General of Police AKM Shahidul Haque said that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina herself was monitoring the massive fire incident that broke out in the DCC market.
“The PM was informed the market fire about 3:30am. Since then, she was monitoring the incident,” said the IGP.
Meanwhile, Dhaka Metropolitan Police Commissioner Asaduzzaman Mia said the fire engulfed quickly because of the presence of combustible materials in the market.
In response to the pointers at sabotage, the DMP commissioner said they will be informed about the incident after getting the probe report.
According to DNCC sources, the market was set up in 1962 and shops were allocated to businessmen in 1983. But some local goons have been trying to evict them from the market since then.
In 2003, the then Dhaka mayor Sadeque Hossain Khoka floated a tender for the 18-storey ‘Gulshan Trade Centre’ without consulting the shop owners. The contract was awarded to one Amin Associates Overseas Co, a concern of Metro Group and deal was signed.
