Seventeen people—including eight children—perished and dozens were injured early Sunday when a fire ripped through a mixed residential-commercial building near Charminar’s bustling Gulzar House in Hyderabad.
President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi conveyed condolences and wished the injured a speedy recovery, joining a nationwide outpouring of grief.
In a media release, Professor Salim Engineer, vice-president of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH), expressed “profound sorrow” over the tragedy and urged the Telangana government and civic agencies to order “a comprehensive, transparent investigation.” He called for strict action against anyone who flouted safety norms.
“Repeated neglect of fire-safety standards, delayed firefighting response and the difficulty fire-tenders faced in Hyderabad’s narrow by-lanes point to gross negligence,” Professor Salim Engineer said.
While praising firefighters for deploying sky-lifts and robot hoses, he argued that the heavy death toll exposes serious gaps in urban fire preparedness nationwide. JIH reiterated its earlier proposal for a national commission—headed by a former Director-General of Fire Services & Civil Defence—to audit fire infrastructure and enforce stringent safety compliance in all buildings.
