Kolkata Police have arrested Saba Zafar, identified as the main lessee of Shikha Inn on Free School Street, nearly three months after a fire at the hotel killed nine people, including a child. The arrest was carried out in Shibpur, Howrah, by a team from the detective department’s Anti-rowdy Squad on Wednesday, according to police.
Zafar, the wife of Abu Zafar, is scheduled to be produced before a court on Thursday. Police said she had allegedly been evading arrest since the fire on August 19. The blaze broke out in the early hours at the hotel, which is located next to the state fire department headquarters.
Nine people died in the incident. Most of the victims are believed to have died from asphyxiation after inhaling smoke, according to the report. The police investigation has flagged serious fire-safety lapses at the hotel, placing the case within a wider urban concern over life safety, emergency access and compliance in densely built commercial areas.
Additional commissioner (crime) Kunal Agarwal said Zafar was the “main lessee” of the fire-ravaged hotel. The 11-month lease was reportedly in her name, although Abu Zafar handled the hotel’s day-to-day operations, police said. The property had been leased from its owner, Bireswar Mitra, for a monthly rent of ₹40,000.
Abu Zafar was arrested shortly after the fire, while Mitra was also arrested earlier in connection with the case. The arrests have followed the investigation into the hotel’s operating arrangements and the fire-safety conditions identified by police. The reported distinction between the legal lessee and the person managing daily operations is now part of the case’s accountability trail.
The fire occurred despite the hotel’s proximity to the headquarters of the state fire department, underlining the operational importance of building-level safety measures, access routes and evacuation arrangements rather than proximity to an emergency authority alone. The supplied report does not state the specific safety violations or the next steps in the investigation beyond Zafar’s court production.
Zafar’s production before the court on Thursday is the next formal step reported in the case. The investigation will determine the legal responsibility of those connected with the hotel’s ownership, lease and operation.
