Jay Mishra, a key accused in the south Delhi hotel fire that killed 22 people, surrendered before a court here on Monday, an official said.
A close associate and accountant of hotel owner Lavkesh Bajaj, Mishra also has an FIR against him, registered in 2024 under section 223 (Causes danger to human life, health, or safety) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, police said. The FIR was in connection with the absence of a security apparatus in the hotel.
Mishra had been on the radar of investigators since the fire at Flourish Stays Bed and Breakfast in Malviya Nagar’s Hauz Rani area on June 4. Multiple police teams had been conducting raids in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar to trace him.
According to police sources, Mishra has known Bajaj for nearly a decade and worked as a frontman for several of his business interests while also handling financial and accounting matters.
Investigators believe he played a key role in the day-to-day functioning of the hotel and are examining the extent of his involvement in its management, licensing, finances and operational decisions.
The development comes as Delhi Police continues to widen its probe into the tragedy, one of the deadliest hotel fires in the capital in recent years.
Police had earlier questioned hotel owner Bajaj, who is in custody, regarding the property’s ownership structure, finances, safety compliance and operational practices.
During questioning, Bajaj allegedly told investigators that he had delegated the hotel’s operations to Mishra.
Officers are scrutinising documents, financial records and other business transactions to determine who was responsible for the hotel’s functioning and whether mandatory safety norms were ignored.
The investigation has already led to the arrest of the hotel’s 65-year-old cook, Keshav Negi, who was produced before a court and remanded to police custody. According to investigators, Negi was preparing food when the fire broke out.
The blaze claimed 22 lives, including that of a 16-year-old girl, and 12 foreign nationals from countries such as Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Iraq, Congo, Mozambique and Liberia.
Police have booked Bajaj under the charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
