Siwan Pandal Fire, Rasulpur: Four Dead, Two Arrested After Fire During Play; Cause Under Investigation

Updated 4 November 2026. Four of the people burnt in this fire have now died, and two members of the puja committee have been arrested. This story is still developing: the cause, the case and the injured count may change.

Update, 4 November 2026: four dead, two arrested

When this page was first published, no one had died. That has changed. Four of the boys and young men burnt in the Rasulpur fire have since died of their burns, and three newspapers put the toll at four: Dainik Bhaskar (2 November), Hindustan and Prabhat Khabar (both 3 November). The first died on 23 October and the second on 25 October, both at PMCH Patna. The third died at PMCH on Saturday, 31 October, 11 days after the fire (Prabhat Khabar; Dainik Bhaskar). The fourth died on Sunday, 1 November, according to Hindustan and Prabhat Khabar, who both say he was moved from Patna to Gorakhpur and died there; Prabhat Khabar says at a private hospital, at about 11 pm. Dainik Bhaskar instead says he died on Monday, 2 November, at PMCH Patna. We use 1 November and Gorakhpur because two outlets agree, and we flag the difference.

The outlets also disagree on who the four were. The ages they give run from 9 to 22, and the same person is given different ages in different reports: the first to die is called 9, 10 or 17, the third 16, 18 or 22, and the fourth 9, 10 or 11. They are described as children, teenagers and young men who had come to watch the play. We use no names and no ages.

Police have arrested two members of the puja committee. Prabhat Khabar reported the arrests on 28 October and Hindustan on 29 October, and Hindustan says they have been sent to jail. The FIR naming 13 committee members, filed on the village watchman’s complaint, stands, and police say the roles of the others are being examined. Hindustan says the two were arrested on the basis of technical investigation, on the allegation that the play was staged by burning a flammable substance without permission and in breach of the licence rules. Prabhat Khabar reports the police allegation slightly differently, as a fire lit from a gas cylinder without permission. We are not naming those arrested. No report of the sections of law, a charge sheet or a court order has appeared.

The new reports also give more on what happened on the stage, and they still do not match exactly. Prabhat Khabar (3 November) says that as a comic ghost-exorcism scene was being prepared, a young man in the confusion poured a flammable substance on wood in a clay pot and set it alight, and the splashes fell on the young men sitting close to the right side of the stage. Dainik Bhaskar (2 November) says clay pots filled with petrol had been placed on the stage for the scene and one of them caught fire; the curtain hid it from the audience at first, the fire spread to the stage and the tent, and a burning curtain fell on children sitting below. Hindustan (3 November) says a flammable substance was being used to show a cremation-ground scene in the play of Raja Harishchandra. Dainik Bhaskar also reports a shortage of fire-fighting equipment, which Lalluram had said earlier, so two outlets now say so. No official finding on the cause has been published.

Dainik Bhaskar adds its own assessment that questions are being asked in the village about officials’ accountability: the administration had said magistrates and police were posted at pandals, yet petrol was used and fire-safety arrangements were not enough. That is the newspaper’s view, and no official response to it has been reported.

Last checked: 4 November 2026.

What happened

On the night of Tuesday, 20 October 2026, a fire broke out on a stage during a play at a Durga Puja and Dussehra gathering in Rasulpur village, under Barharia police station, Siwan district, Bihar. Siwan Superintendent of Police Bharat Soni told PTI that ten people, including five children, were injured, and that five children with serious burns were referred to Patna for better treatment. Several outlets describe the event as a Ramlila performance at a Durga Puja pandal; Lalluram and Voice of Bihar say the play being staged was Raja Harishchandra. When this page was first published, no death had been reported; four have since died (see the update above).

Time: PTI and Amar Ujala say “evening”. Lalluram, quoting eyewitnesses, says about 10.30 p.m. We use “the night of 20 October” and flag the difference. Tarun Mitra calls it “Wednesday night”, which cannot be right because that article was published on the morning of 21 October.

We are not naming any of the injured. Lalluram and another outlet have published names and a child’s age, but none of that is needed to understand what went wrong.

What the reports say about the cause

No official finding has been published. PTI, Amar Ujala and Voice of Bihar do not state a cause. The other outlets give different accounts, so please read them as reports, not conclusions.

• Petrol-filled pots at a pyre scene. Lalluram reports that the Harishchandra play was to show a funeral-pyre scene, and clay pots filled with petrol had been kept for it. Fire suddenly flared in them. With a curtain hung on the stage, the audience did not see what was happening behind it. Lalluram says the fire reached the upper part of the tent and a burning curtain fell on a child sitting below, after which people ran in panic.
• A performer’s fire stunt. Tarun Mitra and a Deshaj Times headline say a performer was doing a fire stunt with petrol, caught fire and, trying to save himself, threw the petrol towards the crowd.
• A balloon with a flammable substance. IANS (via Social News XYZ) and Livecities report that a balloon holding a “suspected flammable” or chemical substance burst during a fire scene and the substance fell on spectators sitting near the stage. IANS adds that police found this in a preliminary inquiry and that a forensic team has been called to test samples.
• A “fire box”. News4nation, in an early report, says a box used for fire effects burst.
• Petrol in a comic scene. Prabhat Khabar (21 October, evening) says that around 10.50 p.m., while a comic ghost-exorcism scene was being prepared, fire was being used and petrol flared up, burning about a dozen youths and teenagers. Hindustan quotes the Saran range DIG as saying a flammable substance was used in the play, which is against the rules.

These may all be different descriptions of the same fire effect, or some may be wrong. What the accounts share is a live-fire effect with a flammable liquid or substance on a stage, close to a seated crowd. Which version is correct is for the police and the forensic report to say.

Injured, hospitals and the count

The only figure attributed to a named officer, the SP via PTI, is 10 injured including five children. Lalluram and Tarun Mitra say 12 or about a dozen; News4nation, early in the morning, said about six. We use 10 as the headline and mention 12 where local outlets use it.

The injured were first taken to the Barharia community health centre (Lalluram, Tarun Mitra), then to Sadar Hospital, Siwan. Voice of Bihar says a special medical team was formed on the District Magistrate’s direction. PTI says five children with serious burns were referred to Patna. Lalluram says four people, including a six-year-old, were in a very serious condition, yet also says five were sent to Patna, so its own numbers differ. Tarun Mitra and Deshaj Times say four were referred to PMCH, Patna. The two earliest reports, in Hindustan Times and Live Hindustan, were headlined with about 10 to 11 injured and five referred to PMCH. The Hindustan Times page was not available for review; the later Live Hindustan reports are used here. On the number of children the reports differ: five (SP via PTI, Amar Ujala) or four (Live Hindustan, 21 October evening). On 22 October Live Hindustan quoted District Magistrate Vijay Prakash Meena as saying that four of the injured were sent home after first aid at Sadar Hospital, four were referred to PMCH and one more was being sent, and that the administration had deputed two officers to oversee treatment. Prabhat Khabar reported at 7.11 p.m. on 21 October that all the injured were out of danger, but its later report (9.24 p.m.) quotes PMCH superintendent Dr Rajiv Kumar Singh saying that six burnt youths from Siwan have been admitted there, that more than 90 per cent of the body is burnt in two of them, that most have burnt faces and a risk of smoke injury to the airway, that most are in a very critical condition and that doctors are watching them round the clock in a separate ward. The PMCH report calls the six youths and gives no ages, so we cannot tell whether the children are among them, and six is higher than the four to five referrals the District Magistrate gave on 22 October. No other outlet reviewed gave the condition of the patients at that time. Four of the injured have since died (see the update above).

Police and administration

The SDPO (Sadar-I) and the Barharia SHO reached the spot. A special police team led by the SDPO (Sadar-I) was formed on the SP’s direction, and a Forensic Science Laboratory team was called (PTI, Amar Ujala, Voice of Bihar). PTI says police are recording the organisers’ statements and that further legal action is under way. IANS quotes an official saying an FIR will be registered on the basis of the victims’ statements and the findings of the inquiry. Saran range DIG Nilesh Kumar visited Rasulpur on the evening of 21 October, met the families and told the officers to stay in touch with the injured and monitor them in hospital (Prabhat Khabar). He told Hindustan that, prima facie, the incident appears to have happened through the organisers’ negligence, that the committee had taken a licence for the Durga Puja but the play was being staged under it, that a flammable substance was used in the play against the rules, and that action would follow against whoever is found responsible. Hindustan also reports that the district administration has formed a committee to examine the cause and possible negligence. These are early remarks, not findings. Prabhat Khabar reported at 6.53 p.m. on 22 October that Barharia police have registered an FIR naming 13 members of the puja committee, on the written complaint of the village watchman. The complaint says the committee took no administrative permission to stage the play late at night or to use flammable or chemical material on stage, and gave the police and the administration no prior notice. The report says the case follows the inquiry that the DIG and the SP ordered under the SDPO (Sadar), and quotes the station house officer as calling the lighting of a fire on stage without permission, with safety standards ignored and licence conditions broken, a very serious offence. It adds that the seriously burnt have been referred to PMCH and are being treated in a burn ward. The report does not give the sections of law. We are not naming those booked or arrested. Two committee members have since been arrested (see the update above); no compensation announcement has been reported.

Lalluram, in a single report, adds things that are not in the PTI or Amar Ujala versions: that a preliminary inquiry found the puja committee had taken no permission for the play, and that no fire-fighting equipment was at the spot. It also quotes the SP as saying the children were wearing polyester clothes, which is why they were burnt more badly. On permission, the DIG’s remark above (a licence for the puja, not for the play) and the complaint behind the FIR, which alleges that no permission was taken, point the same way. On fire-fighting equipment, Dainik Bhaskar (2 November) now says there was a shortage, as Lalluram did earlier; the polyester clothing is still reported by one outlet only, so please treat that as unconfirmed.

About our sources. PTI (carried by ThePrint) and Amar Ujala are the main reports and quote the SP. IANS, Lalluram, Tarun Mitra, Voice of Bihar, Livecities and News4nation add detail but differ from each other. No police press release or official statement on the cause has been reported. The Hindustan Times page was not available for review, but Live Hindustan’s reports of 21 and 22 October and Prabhat Khabar’s report on the DIG’s visit were read. No verified video of the incident is available, so none is shown.

Why this matters

Festival stages in villages and small towns use curtains, tents, bamboo, paint and synthetic costumes, and the audience, often with many children, sits on the ground right next to the stage. Add a flammable liquid for a fire effect and one flare-up has nowhere to go but into the crowd. Burns in children are serious, and synthetic cloth that melts and clings to skin can make an injury worse. The incident came in Dussehra week, when we have already seen other festival fires, crushes and immersion accidents; our Dussehra fairs and immersion safety guide covers the wider picture, and our guide to pandals, melas and festival crowds covers crowd flow.

We have covered other festival-season incidents, such as the Chorbagan pandal stampede in Kolkata, and a Bihar fire that burnt children, the Gopalganj LPG leak fire. The hazards differ, but the questions about preparation, exits and first response are the same.

Lessons for organisers

These are general safety practices, not findings about what went wrong in Rasulpur, which is still unknown.

• No open flame or flammable liquid in a stage effect. Never keep petrol, kerosene, spirit or similar liquids on or near a stage, and never use them for a fire scene. Use a pyre scene lit by red cloth and a fan, or LED lighting. If a real flame is unavoidable, only a trained person should handle it, well away from curtains, tent cloth and the audience.
• Keep the audience back. Fireworks or any fire effect need a clear gap between the stage and the first row, a barrier, and no children in the front rows.
• Choose fire-retardant cloth and decorations. Curtains, backdrops, tent cloth and decorations should be treated or fire-retardant material, not loose synthetic cloth, paper or dry bamboo hanging over the stage. Costumes close to a flame should be cotton or treated fabric, because polyester and other synthetics melt and stick to skin.
• Keep extinguishers and water ready. Place suitable extinguishers near the stage and the exits, along with buckets of water or sand, and a fire blanket for smothering flames on a person. Make sure volunteers know how to use them; see our guide to using a fire blanket.
• Plan exits and crowd flow. Keep several wide, clear exits, do not block aisles, and have someone with a microphone who can calmly tell people to move. A stage curtain can hide a fire from the audience, so keep a spotter backstage.
• Get permission and tell the authorities. Ask the police and the local administration what permission an event needs, and inform the nearest fire station and hospital of the date. Fire-safety requirements for temporary structures and gatherings differ by state and by the size of the event, so ask the local fire department; we have not verified a single rule that applies here.
• Have a first-aid and ambulance plan. Keep a first-aid kit and a trained volunteer on site, and save the phone numbers below.
• Emergency numbers for Bihar. 112 is the national emergency number, 101 is the fire service, and 108 is the national ambulance number; the ambulance service can vary by state, so also save the nearest government hospital’s number.

First aid for burns on a person, including a child

This is general first aid in line with NHS guidance; it does not replace training or a doctor. Our basic first aid guide has more, and the firecracker safety guide and festival fire safety guide add festival-specific advice.

• Move the person away from the fire. If clothes are burning, smother the flames with a fire blanket or heavy cotton cloth, or make the person stop, drop and roll. Do not let them run.
• Call 108 or 112 at once for any child with a burn, a large or deep burn, a burn on the face, or if a chemical or fuel is involved.
• Once the person is safe, cool the burn with cool running water for 20 minutes, as soon as possible. If there is no running water, use cool bottled water or a wet towel. Do not use ice.
• Remove clothing and jewellery near the burn, but leave anything stuck to the skin. Cloth that has melted onto the skin should be left for the hospital.
• Cover the burn loosely with cling film or a clean, non-fluffy cloth. Do not apply creams, oils, butter or toothpaste and do not burst blisters.
• Keep the person warm and calm and watch their breathing until help arrives.

More on Siwan: see our Siwan fire and emergency safety guide for emergency numbers and the local risks to know.

What is still not known

The cause of the fire; whether the injured count is 10, 12 or more; how the remaining injured are doing now that four have died; which sections of law the FIR carries, what the court will decide about the two who were arrested and whether others will be arrested; what the administration’s committee finds; which account of the fire on the stage is right; and whether any compensation has been announced. This is a developing story and we will update this page when the police, the administration or the hospitals release a statement.