South Delhi fire: Man in whose name B&B is registered surrenders before court

2 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jun 9, 2026 09:08 AM IST

Forensic teams at the site where a catastrophic fire broke out, reportedly claiming 21 lives, in the Hauz Rani area of Malviya Nagar, in New Delhi on Friday. (Source: ANI)

Jay Mishra, the close associate and accountant of Lavkesh Bajaj, the owner of Flourish Stays B&B in South Delhi’s Malviya Nagar, where 22 people died in a fire last week, surrendered before a Delhi court on Monday. He was later sent to two-day police custody.

The police submitted before the court that the registration certificate of the B&B had been obtained in the name of Mishra, who was actively associated with the affairs and functioning of the B&B.

The police said they needed Mishra’s custody to confront him with Bajaj regarding the procurement and use of the “certificate and the actual management and operation of the establishment”. They further submitted that they needed to “ascertain the complete circumstances under which the registration/license was obtained in his name and the documents submitted before the concerned authorities”.

Also, police said, they wanted to recover relevant documents, records, electronic device, digital communications and other evidence related to the registration and operation of the establishment.

In the remand papers, police said they needed Mishra’s custody to “verify financial transactions, hank records and business records connected with the functioning of the establishment” and to “confront him with documentary evidence collected during investigation and to ascertain his knowledge regarding guest occupancy, permissions, licenses, safety compliances and other operational aspects of the establishment”.

The court, meanwhile, dismissed the bail plea of Keshav Negi, a cook at the B&B who had been arrested in the case.

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Nirbhay Thakur is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express who primarily covers district courts in Delhi and has reported on the trials of many high-profile cases since 2023.

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Delhi fire

Malviya Nagar

South Delhi