Murshidabad: Three children of a family charred to death

Kolkata: Three children of a family were charred to death after their house was caught on fire while they were sleeping late on Saturday night at Benipur Bhanganpara area of Ranitala in Murshidabad.

According to sources, the house which was caught on fire belongs to two brothers identified as Showan Sheikh and Nayan Sheikh. On Saturday night, all members of the Sheikh family went to sleep. Showan’s three children Sahil, Adil and Sajida were sleeping in a room when suddenly a fire broke out in the kitchen which subsequently spread to the entire house.

When Showan’s wife and others woke up, the fire had already gutted the room in which the minors were sleeping. Despite repeated attempts, the family members and neighbours failed to save the children. After a while, a fire tender was pressed into action. A couple of hours later, the blaze was doused following which the charred bodies were recovered.

Preliminary investigation suggests that the incident was caused by a short circuit. There was an exposed electrical wire in the kitchen which might have triggered the flames.