3 min readRaipurApr 18, 2026 10:44 PM IST
Days after an explosion at a Vedanta power plant in Chhattisgarh’s Sakti district, industrialist and MP Naveen Jindal has backed Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal, who has been named in an FIR. The development comes as the death toll rose to 23.
In a post on X, Jindal said the tragedy was “deeply painful” and called for compensation, livelihood support and a thorough probe, but questioned naming Agarwal before the investigation.
“Proper compensation, livelihood support for the families, and a thorough investigation are non-negotiable. But naming Shri Anil Agarwal Ji in the FIR before any investigation raises serious concerns. He is a self-made man from a humble and backward community background who built a global enterprise from scratch. He had no role in that plant’s operations. When accidents happen in PSU plants or Railways, do we name the Chairman? We do not,” he said.
He went on to say: “The same standard must apply to the private sector, too. Investigate first. Establish responsibility based on evidence. Then act. India’s #ViksitBharat vision needs people like Shri Anil Agarwal to keep investing and building. That happens only when investors trust the system”.
The remarks come as two more workers have succumbed to injuries. Three remain critical and nine are under observation at hospitals in Raipur and Raigarh.
The deceased were identified as Subrata Jana (Medinipur, West Bengal), who died at Raigarh Medical College in the early hours of Saturday, and Upendra Sah (Garhwa, Jharkhand), who died at Kalda Hospital, Raipur. A doctor, requesting anonymity, said timely admission within the first six hours is crucial for survival in such cases.
On Friday, Leader of Opposition Charan Das Mahant demanded that charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder be added to the FIR. He also sought a judicial inquiry instead of an SDM-level probe and called for treatment of the injured at specialised burn units outside the state, along with a dedicated burn hospital in Chhattisgarh.
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The explosion occurred around 2.30 pm on Tuesday in Boiler-01 of the Vedanta plant. A preliminary report by the Chief Inspector of Boilers cited excessive fuel accumulation in the furnace, leading to extreme pressure and the blast. An FSL report from Sakti corroborated this finding.
Investigators said Vedanta and NGSL failed to adhere to maintenance and operational standards, with lapses causing sudden pressure fluctuations. “Based on available evidence and technical reports, clear negligence has been observed,” an official statement said.
An FIR currently invokes sections related to death due to negligence and negligent conduct with machinery against “Vedanta Company Director Anil Agarwal, Company Manager Devendra Patel, and other responsible officers and employees” for prima facie negligence.
