Kolkata: Nine more bodies were recovered from the fire-ravaged section of Stephen Court yesterday, taking the death count in the March 23 blaze at the building to 43.
The West Bengal government, meanwhile, has formed an 11-member probe panel to get to the bottom of the tragedy in the state capital Kolkata.
According to police, two bodies were identified with the help of identity cards found on the corpses. Those identified are Bidyut Acharya, 22, an employee of call centre firm Wiltech Computers, and Sangeeta Kumari. Seven people are still missing.
The burnt bodies recovered yesterday were all found on the fifth floor of the fire-ravaged building, where civic workers and firemen are working round the clock to clear the debris amid an unbearably foul smell and dirt.
Joint commissioner of police, Javed Shamim, said the corpses have been handed over to the state-run SSKM hospital for identification by the families of the victims, who have been on a round-the-clock vigil at the hospital premises for the past six days with the hope of seeing their near and dear ones — dead if not alive.
The probe panel set up by the government will be led by former home secretary Sourin Roy and will include former state director general of police Dinesh Vajpai.
Union finance minister and senior Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee and Trinamool Congress party supremo Mamata Banerjee had demanded setting up of a probe panel to unearth the reasons for the fire.
"A probe is needed. It should look into why the mishap occurred, whether proper safety measures had been taken," Mukherjee, who is also the state Congress party president, said.
Going a step further, main opposition Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee pressed for a time-bound judicial inquiry under a serving judge.
"And if they cannot do it, then they should seek a CBI probe. And mind you, the CBI probe should be impartial," she said, after walking in a two kilometre procession from Birla Planetarium to Stephen Court alongside families of the victims and those missing.
Leaping flames engulfed the upper floors of the iconic building on Park Street last Tuesday. Only 22 of the bodies have been identified beyond any doubt so far. Several bodies have multiple claimants. DNA tests are being conducted to identify the disputed bodies and those that are completely unrecognisable.
Six people died after jumping from the top floors in a desperate bid to save themselves from the fire. Thirty-six other burnt bodies have been found till Monday afternoon.
Built by Armenian Stephen Arathoon in 1910, Stephen Court also housed the iconic Flurys tea room, the famous eatery Peter Cat, besides Cafe Coffee Day and One Step Up restaurant.
