Karol Bagh fire: Men and women who didn’t make it

“We called him all morning but calls went unanswered. Then we watched the news and feared he probably stayed at the hotel. His colleagues rushed and told us he was dead,” said a relative in Panchkula. A police officer said he “jumped from the window of his room after it caught fire”. He is survived by his wife Monika and son Sumain, 20.

PC Vidhyasagar (60), Jayashree PC (53), P Nalini Amma (84)

Kochi, Kerala

Three gold bangles around Nalini Amma’s wrist were the only way her son P C Som Shekharan (57) could identify her charred body. Another set of three gold bangles, a chain and a ring were in a plastic pouch.

“We reached Delhi from Kochi on February 7 to attend a wedding. I was in the adjacent room and we woke up early to get ready for Haridwar,” said Shekharan, who recalled his sister Jayashree’s screams from the room she shared with their mother. His brother Vidhyasagar also died in the fire.

Around 4 am, Shekharan said lights went out, the generator switched on, and a burning smell filled the room. He broke the window with a wooden chair and was rescued by fire officials. “I thought my mother and two siblings will survive. Now I will return home without them,” said Shekharan.

Pranav Kumar Bhaskar (33), Chalpatirao EVS (50), HPCL employees

Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam

Minutes after he saw his son’s body, Bhaskar’s father collapsed on a bench. In a corner sat his mother, who screamed out his name. After news broke of the blaze, Bhaskar’s colleagues rushed to the hotel, then the hospital. “There was an HPCL meeting and he was supposed to go back to Hyderabad on Tuesday,” said a colleague. Chalpatirao, too, was supposed to return home Tuesday — to his wife, children.

Aravinth Sukumaran (38) and Nandhakumar (34), export house employees

Chennai

The two often visited Delhi with their colleague Hari Mangary, and would stay at the hotel. This time, Mangary skipped the trip. “Their families couldn’t come to Delhi, so we sent photos on WhatsApp to identify them,” said Shashikumar, Nandhakumar’s relative.

Rabia Jusafbhai Memon (53), lawyer

Surat

It was late Monday night that Memon checked in. Hours later, her son Ishan, a college student, was outside the RML mortuary, falling into the arms of his two friends. He had lost his father a few years ago. “She had a court hearing Tuesday, and came to Delhi with a colleague, who survived,” said a relative.

Shankar Narayan Sheshadri (52), Santosh Mahadev, doctors

Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra

Sheshadri was in Delhi for a research project on developing protocol for bone marrow concentration. His colleagues identified the body. “When I reached RML, doctors showed me his photogragh for identification,” said Dr Prabhu Mishra, his friend. Entries in the hotel register helped police ascertain that two doctors were among the dead.

Htumhla Sein (32), Dawhla May (67), Mya Mya Htwe (45)

Myanmarese tourists

The three were part of a group of eight, who planned to visit Bihar and Uttar Pradesh on a pilgrimage. A Buddhist monk is coordinating with their families.

Tara Chand (30), hotel chef

Bageshar, Uttarakhand

Police said he jumped from the fourth-floor window. His brother Surendra Kumar said he was working the night shift.