Nagpur: Just two days after he was sacked by the owner of a renowned paint shop in Nagpur — Fakhruddin Hasan Ali & Brothers, located in Itwari, — a disgruntled former employee unleashed an arson attack on the establishment, leading to losses of approximately Rs 45 lakh for the shop’s owner.
The arson incident, which took place in the Tehsil Police Station area, came to light after the shop owner Burhan Daud Ajiz Daud (29), a resident of Plot No 166, near Empire Sports Arena, Gittikhadan, submitted CCTV footage to the police.
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Wednesday 12 March 2025
The accused, identified as Raunak Paliwal (24), a resident of Zenda Chowk, Prem Nagar, was arrested on the complaint. The Daud family has been operating the paint shop at Loha Oli, Itwari, for several years. With six employees and three family members on staff, the shop maintained daily operating hours from 10.30 am to 8.30 pm. On Sundays, the shop stayed open till afternoon.
According to police, on October 9 when Burhan’s uncle, Parvez, closed the shop at 9 pm and returned home. A fire erupted in the shop early morning and Burhan was alerted to the situation around 5.30 pm. It took approximately 12 hours to extinguish the fire, by which time all the paint materials inside the shop were destroyed. For 48 hours, the family was in the dark about the cause of the fire until a neighbouring business, M/s Hasanji Trading Company, brought the CCTV footage to their attention.
The footage revealed Raunak Paliwal pouring petrol into the shop through a gap in the shutter door before deliberately setting it ablaze. He was then seen fleeing the spot on a two-wheeler. Daud family members reached Tehsil Police Station on Thursday with the CCTV footage. Senior Police Inspector Vinod Patil quickly understood the entire conspiracy and directed the staff to pick up Paliwal.
After being grilled by the police, Paliwal confessed to the crime. He reportedly told the police that he was sacked by the owner on October 8. As a result, he set the shop afire for revenge. A case under Section 436 of Indian Penal Code was registered by Tehsil Police and arrested the accused. The police produced the accused in the court and obtained his police custody for three days.
