Fire in A.P. High Court guts library, judges’ chambers

Fire broke out in the Andhra Pradesh High Court building, a heritage structure, destroying the chambers of five judges, a library housing valuable books and a mini-conference hall in the early hours of Monday.

More than 100 firemen had to sweat it out for over three hours using 15 fire tenders to douse the flames that began around 4.30 a.m.

Though the blaze was put out by 7 a.m., smoke continued to billow out till evening prompting Fire Service officials to continue fire-fighting operations and deploy teams of firemen at the spot to face any eventuality.

The police and the Fire Service officials said they were yet to ascertain the reasons for the fire. The A.P. Forensic Science Laboratory Director, O. Narasimha Murthy, and the CLUES team of Hyderabad Police, led by Suresh, thoroughly examined the damaged High Court building looking out for evidence to confirm the source of the fire. The team collected some samples and would examine the building on Tuesday also for leads.

Investigators suspect that the fire started in the second floor and spread to the first floor. “This is to be corroborated with evidence because normally flames tend to go upwards,” the police said. It is being probed from both the ‘sabotage and short circuit’ angles. The entire open space on the court premises is usually parked with vehicles of clients and advocates.

Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy spoke to the Chief Justice, Anil Ramesh Dave, over phone and offered all assistance to refurbish the court building.