Ludhiana, March 23 -- An unidentified man allegedly set fire to the garment section of Smart Bazaar, a grocery retail chain near Veer Palace on Ludhiana-Chandigarh Road, while customers and staff were present inside the store. A major tragedy was averted as employees quickly doused the flames using fire extinguishers.

The incident, which was captured on CCTV cameras, led to the registration of an FIR by the Focal Point police against the unidentified accused.

The FIR was lodged following a complaint by Ricky Guleria, a resident of village Malakpur and manager at the Smart Bazaar outlet. In his statement, Guleria said that on March 16, staff members alerted him about a fire in the garment section. The employees acted promptly and managed...