Mumbai : A massive fire broke out in the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) Zone-1 office located in a privately-owned building in South Mumbai’s Ballard Estate early Sunday morning, raging for nearly 10 hours and raising fears over the possible loss of key investigation records.
The blaze, which started around 2:30 am at the Kaiser-I-Hind heritage building, severely damaged office infrastructure, including computers and important documentation. Sources indicated that the investigations into several high-profile cases—such as those involving fugitive businessmen Mehul Choksi and Nirav Modi, and politicians Chhagan Bhujbal and Anil Deshmukh—could be impacted.
While the full extent of the damage is still being assessed, officials noted that most of the investigation records had been digitized. There is hope that digital backups may help the agency recover crucial information. For cases where chargesheets have already been filed, the ED has submitted original records in court and kept copies in its office.
The questioning of scheduled witnesses, summoned by the ED for statements, is expected to be affected due to the disruption. The agency operated offices on both the fourth floor and part of the first floor of the Kaiser-I-Hind building. The fire, however, remained confined to the fourth floor, which housed the additional director’s office and key investigation units. Both floors were closed at the time of the incident, minimizing the risk to personnel.
Only canteen staff and security guards were present in the building when the fire broke out. Fortunately, no injuries were reported. The Mumbai Fire Brigade stated that the fire mainly affected the ED’s wooden furniture and office infrastructure. They also mentioned that furniture placed in common passages and balconies hampered firefighting efforts.
The fire was finally brought under control and extinguished by noon.
