Ahmedabad: The accused in the Vastral firecracker factory blast resumed operations about 20-25 days ago, taking advantage of the police being occupied with Rath Yatra bandobust, Ahmedabad police commissioner Anupam Singh Gahlaut said on Sunday, adding that all three accused have been arrested.Talking to reporters at a press conference at the city police commissioner’s office, Gahlaut said accused Mehul Dodiya, his mother Ramila Dodiya, and her partner Sadik Syed were running the unit in Ramol, which had witnessed a similar blast in July 2014 in which one person died.“On March 4, 2026, the unit was closed by police due to inadequate safety arrangements, and it remained shut until around 25 days ago, when they started it again. As police were busy with Rath Yatra bandobust, they took advantage of the situation and resumed this illegal business,” Gahlaut said.They again brought labourers, mainly from Sanjeli in Dahod district, and restarted operations without proper safety measures after receiving orders for the upcoming Ganesh Chaturthi festival, Gahlaut said.He said Mehul had fled after the tragedy but was arrested from Sabarmati on Sunday.Recalling the 2014 accident, Gahlaut said that after the fatal fire, the licence issued in Ramila’s name was cancelled. In 2020, she obtained a licence in the name of Mehul Dodiya and resumed the business.The firecracker unit again witnessed the deaths of nine people in Saturday’s blast. Six people, including accused Ramila Dodiya, were injured in the explosion.Late on Saturday, Ramol police booked Mehul Dodiya, owner of New Gujarat Fire Works, Ramila Dodiya, and Sadik Syed for allegedly operating an illegal firecracker manufacturing unit.Police have invoked sections relating to culpable homicide not amounting to murder, endangering human life, and criminal conspiracy under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), besides provisions of the Explosive Substances Act, 1908, and the Explosives Act, 1884.According to the complaint filed by PSI Jayendrasinh Solanki, a police patrol received information around 3.45pm about a loud explosion in a field behind the Rapid Action Force (RAF) camp near a canal in Vastral. As officers reached the spot, RAF personnel, firefighters, and ambulance teams were already engaged in extinguishing the blaze and rescuing workers trapped inside the factory.The FIR states that preliminary inquiries revealed the explosion took place around 3.30pm at New Gujarat Fire Works, which was allegedly operating from rented premises in Vastral village.The injured were shifted to Civil Hospital and LG Hospital. Hospital intimation received by police identified five injured persons admitted to Civil Hospital as Ajay Damor (26), Payal Damor (25), Bharat Charan (26), Suresh Damor (38), and Govind Damor (48), all of whom sustained burn injuries in the blast.Subsequently, police received information from Civil Hospital that Ramila Charan (37), who was initially admitted as an unidentified woman, had succumbed to burn injuries. LG Hospital later informed police that three unidentified women and one unidentified man had also died during treatment.
