A policeman walks past a burnt beverage and food factory after a fire was put out in Rupganj on July 11, 2021. (PHOTO / AFP)

DHAKA - Police in Bangladesh capital Dhaka have arrested the owner, his four sons and three others of a juice factory where 52 people were killed in one of the country's deadliest fires.

Bangladeshi Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan announced the news while talking to reporters after visiting the gutted factory site in Narayanganj on the outskirts of capital Dhaka Saturday.

He said eight people were detained in connection with the horrendous fire incident, which happened on Thursday.

The detainees were later shown arrested in a case filed by police over the charges of murder and attempt to murder.

Bangladeshi Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan announced the news while talking to reporters after visiting the gutted factory site in Narayanganj on the outskirts of capital Dhaka Saturday

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The developments came a day after survivors and victims' relatives alleged that the only gate to enter and exit the factory premises was locked and they staged a demonstration outside and around the factory premises on Friday.

"We've arrested the owner and seven others of the factory and already initiated an investigation which is to be completed very soon," said the minister. "No one will be spared," he added.

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According to senior police official Habibur Rahman, arrestees include Md Abul Hashem, chairman and managing director of Sajeeb Group, which owns the juice factory, his four sons and three senior officials.

The six-storey factory, used to produce various juices, soft drinks and food items, caught fire around 5:30 p.m. local time on Thursday. Deputy Director of Fire Service and Civil Defense Debashish Bardhan told reporters Friday that they had pulled 49 bodies from the debris of the burning factory on Friday afternoon.

"Forty nine bodies, most of them beyond recognition, were recovered from the 4th floor of the building on Friday afternoon," he said.

Three more deaths were reported in the immediate aftermath of the fire on Thursday night.