2 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jun 5, 2026 10:22 AM IST The deceased, identified as Devosmita Paul, an assistant professor at Shivaji College, was living alone in a flat at Satyam Apartment in Vasundhara Enclave, police said.
3 min readNew DelhiJun 5, 2026 10:54 AM IST
Lavkesh Bajaj is the owner of Flourish Stays B&B in South Delhi’s Malviya Nagar, where 21 people died in a fire Wednesday morning. (Source: Delhi Police/ANI Photo)Lavkesh Bajaj, the 60-year-old owner of Flourish Stays B&B in South Delhi’s Malviya Nagar, where 21 people died in a fire Wednesday morning, was first arrested by the Delhi Police last year in a fake passport case involving Bangladeshi nationals in central Delhi. Bajaj was arrested on Wednesday evening by a team led by Assistant Commissioner of Police Ritu Raj. On Thursday, the South District police sought his custody before a Delhi court to ascertain and verify the details of all workers, employees and others engaged in the operation of Flourish Stays, and to trace and apprehend Jay Mishra, the accountant of the establishment, and Rakesh, the manager of the hotel.A senior police officer said Bajaj had been arrested last year after a First Information Report (FIR) was registered at Paharganj police station. “The case was registered in January, and he was arrested months later after police found his connivance during the investigation. He was sent to Tihar Jail and came out on bail after 15 days,” the officer said, adding that the matter is still sub judice.
Sharing details of the case, an officer said a Bangladeshi national was allegedly found living in central Delhi’s Paharganj area on January 29, 2025, using forged Indian identity documents, including Aadhaar cards and an Indian passport, according to the FIR registered at Paharganj police station. The FIR states that on January 29, the police visited a house after receiving information that a Bangladeshi family was staying there on forged documents. At the premises, police found two women and a minor boy. They failed to produce valid identity documents and, during a search of the house, the police allegedly recovered two Bangladeshi passports, an Indian passport, Aadhaar cards, and several bank-related documents.
The police alleged that the photographs on the three passports appeared to be of the same woman. They also found that Aadhaar cards recovered from the premises carried different names and addresses but appeared to relate to the same person. Bajaj was arrested in this case on charges of fraud and cheating.
Mahender Singh Manral is an Assistant Editor with the national bureau of The Indian Express. He is known for his impactful and breaking stories. He covers the Ministry of Home Affairs, Investigative Agencies, National Investigative Agency, Central Bureau of Investigation, Law Enforcement Agencies, Paramilitary Forces, and internal security.
Prior to this, Manral had extensively reported on city-based crime stories along with that he also covered the anti-corruption branch of the Delhi government for a decade. He is known for his knack for News and a detailed understanding of stories. He also worked with Mail Today as a senior correspondent for eleven months. He has also worked with The Pioneer for two years where he was exclusively covering crime beat.
During his initial days of the career he also worked with The Statesman newspaper in the national capital, where he was entrusted with beats like crime, education, and the Delhi Jal Board. A graduate in Mass Communication, Manral is always in search of stories that impact lives.
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2 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jun 5, 2026 10:22 AM IST
The deceased, identified as Devosmita Paul, an assistant professor at Shivaji College, was living alone in a flat at Satyam Apartment in Vasundhara Enclave, police said. (Photo: www.shivaji.du.ac.in)
An assistant professor at a Delhi University college was found murdered at her East Delhi apartment on Thursday afternoon, with preliminary investigations indicating that she was attacked with a blunt object on the head, police sources said. The deceased, identified as Devosmita Paul, an assistant professor at Shivaji College, was living alone in a flat at Satyam Apartment in Vasundhara Enclave, police said. Her husband stays in Bengaluru.Officers said that a PCR call was received around 2:35 pm on Thursday from the deceased’s sister who alerted the police about the body inside her flat. According to the police, the caller, Devarati Paul had been trying to get in touch with her sister since morning, but in vain. Devarati told police that her sister’s flat was locked from the outside. Suspecting something might be wrong, Devarati broke the lock and entered the apartment, after which she discovered her sister’s body, police said. Investigators suspect that the victim, who was hit with a blunt object, sustained fatal injuries on the head. Police said that the exact cause and timing of the death will be ascertained after the post-mortem examination report arrives. Sources said that, during the initial inspection, police did not find “any obvious sign of theft or ransacking in either of the rooms of the flat”. No valuables have been reported missing so far, they said, adding that investigators have not found any clue hinting at robbery either.
Police have registered a case under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Section 103(1), which pertains to murder, and have constituted multiple teams to identify and apprehend the offender. Officers said they are probing the case from all angles.Story continues below this ad Those familiar with Devosmita remember her as a “private” and “reclusive” individual who largely kept to herself. Sources said she interacted with only a limited circle and was not known to be socially active.
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