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7 held for killer blast in Thane restaurant

The Thane city police have arrested seven people, including the owner of Lake View Restaurant, in connection with a gas cylinder explosion that killed 11 persons yesterday.

The explosion occurred at about 8.45 pm IST on Sunday when a kerosene stove burst, causing a gas cylinder kept nearby to explode.

Most of the victims died of suffocation when the restaurant's mezzanine floor, built in violation of municipal rules, caught fire. The customers on the floor could not make a quick getaway because of the narrow exit.

Senior Police Inspector Dilip Shinde, who is investigating the case, said the owner, Devendra Kumar Wadhwa, who also received minor injuries in the accident, was detained today.

The others who were arrested are: Sunil Jivan Shrestha (21), a cook; Kedarnath Sharma (26), the manager; Punaram Thapa (19), Vishnu Harihar (22), Mohan Bisht (28), and Kapil Satra (19), all Wadhwa's employees.

Preliminary investigations have found that the cook and his helpers were responsible for the explosion, Shinde said. They reportedly pumped extra air into the stove, causing it to burst. Further inquiries are in progress.

UNI

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