The families of Anamika Samanta and Neelesh Kumar met for the first time last week ahead of their fall wedding
Credit: Deepak Gupta/Hindustan Times via Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- Engaged couple Anamika Samanta and Neelesh Kumar were among 15 casualties in a fire at a Lucknow, India, building
- The couple had recently introduced their families and were planning a November wedding after three years together
- Authorities have arrested four people and suspended four officials as investigations into the fire continue
One young couple's love story ended in tragedy on Monday, June 22, when a fire broke out at a commercial building in Lucknow, India.
Engaged couple Anamika Samanta and Neelesh Kumar were two of 15 casualties reported in the building that housed a pet shop and animation center. Samanta, 27, and Kumar, 28, met as artists and co-workers at Head Hopper Studios and had just introduced their families for the first time one week prior as they planned their wedding.
“Anamika Samanta's parents visited our home and gave their blessings to her wedding with my younger brother, Neelesh Kumar. We were preparing to travel to Kolkata next week to finalize the wedding arrangements,” Neelesh's brother, Abhishek Kumar, told The Indian Express.
Abhishek added, “The wedding was planned for November this year.”
Credit: Deepak Gupta/Hindustan Times via Getty
The couple had been working at the animation center for around three years, building a relationship while advancing their respective careers.
“We came to know about their relationship some time ago, and after that our family decided to get in touch with Anamika's parents,” Abhishek shared. “We invited them to our home in Lucknow. Four members of her family, including her parents and brother, traveled from Kolkata. During that visit, both families agreed to the marriage and the arrangements were virtually finalized.”
Anamika's younger brother, Akash Samanta, also spoke with The Indian Express about his family's trip to visit Neelesh's family ahead of the wedding, saying, “Before that, our families had never met them. My sister had told our parents about Neelesh some time ago. I had known about their relationship for around six months. I went to Lucknow with my parents, and we visited Neelesh's home.”
Abhishek said that his family did not become aware that his brother was connected to the devastating fire until they received a call from the mortuary on Monday evening.
“We knew about the fire, but we did not take it seriously because there was no indication that Neelesh's workplace was in the same building,” he said, sharing that his brother's body was easily identified and he believes Neelesh died of suffocation.
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The cause of the fire has not been publicly shared, but the BBC reports that the building lacked emergency exits and occupants were trapped inside after flames spread to the sole stairwell. Witnesses told the BBC that people were jumping from windows and climbing down cables to escape the blaze.
"An inquiry has been initiated," Brajesh Pathak, deputy chief minister of Uttar Pradesh state, whose capital is Lucknow, told reporters, per the BBC. "Authorities have been directed to ensure that such incidents do not happen in the future."
BBC reports that police have arrested four people in connection with the fire and four public officials have been suspended.
PEOPLE has reached out to the Chief Minister's Office of the Uttar Pradesh state for updates.
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