Lavkesh Bajaj, owner of Flourish Stay bed-and-breakfast where a horrific fire killed 21 people in Delhi on Wednesday, appears to be a repeat offender. The 60-year-old was first arrested by the Delhi Police in 2025 in connection with a case involving the procurement of fake Indian documents, including passports and Aadhaar cards for Bangladeshi nationals, facilitating their illegal stay in the national capital.
The case dates to January 29, 2025, when the Police received information that a Bangladeshi family was residing in Central Delhi’s Paharganj area using fake documents. Acting on this tip-off, the police raided a house and found a woman living in rented accommodation along with her daughter and minor grandson. The two women were identified as Sweety Sarkar alias Beauty Hawladar alias Johra Khatoon, and her daughter Pushpo Sarkar alias Pushpo Hawladar alias Pushpo Saiyada Akther. During investigation, they failed to produce any valid identity documents.
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The Delhi Police recovered two Bangladeshi passports, one Indian passport, multiple Aadhaar cards, and banking-related documents during a search of the premises.
The photograph on all three passports appeared to be of the same woman. The recovered Aadhaar cards bore different names and addresses, but they too had the same picture.
The accused Sweety Sarkar’s fake Indian Passport carried an address of Chattarpur Enclave. Verification of the said address revealed that it belonged to Lavkesh Bajaj, a resident of Saket in South Delhi.
When questioned, Bajaj admitted to allowing Sarkar and her family to use his residential address for obtaining Indian identity documents in exchange for money.
The Police arrested Lavkesh Bajaj, Sweety Sarkar, and Pushpo Sarkar and filed a chargesheet against all three accused. A separate Police Information Report was submitted regarding the minor child for legal action under applicable provisions.
Bajaj was sent to Tihar jail, where he remained for around 15 days before securing bail. The matter remains pending before a court.
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Lavkesh Bajaj Is Behind The Bars, Again
Lavkesh Bajaj is once again under the police lens after his BnB, Flourish Stay, in Delhi’s Malviya Nagar caught fire, killing 21 people, including 12 foreign nationals. Bajaj was arrested hours after the fire engulfed the five-storey building and is currently in four-day police custody.
During an interrogation on Wednesday night, Bajaj confessed to driving past his burning hotel instead of stopping to help rescue those trapped in the fire. He fled the spot out of fear and drove around.
Bajaj was suspected of fleeing the country as both his children are settled abroad which is why the Delhi Police had initiated the process of issuing a lookout circular (LOC) against Bajaj and his wife.
Delhi Hotel Fire: Security Lapses, Allegations
A short circuit is said to have caused the fire that spread to the building, sources told NDTV on Thursday amid speculation that it was triggered by a cylinder blast. The hotel was operating without a fire no objection certificate (NOC).
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According to the certificate of registration accessed by NDTV, the Flourish Stay had permission to operate only six rooms – three each on first and second floor – under the BnB category. However, 25 rooms were operational, including some in the basement.
The initial probe found that the building had only a single entry and exit point, making it difficult for guests to evacuate. Additionally, the windows were sealed, and the main door was sensor operated.