Bhubaneswar, Dec. 31: Ajit Swain, the son of the man who allegedly set his own house in Rourkela on fire, and Biswaranjan Satpathy succumbed to severe burn injuries at the hospital today.

Main accused Akshaya Swain allegedly set a room on the first floor of his house in Rourkela on fire to get back at his sons whom he suspected were trying to take forcible ownership of his house.

With this new deaths, the number of people who died in the bizarre incident rose to four. Earlier, two engineering students — Gopal Pradhan and Phelix Ekka — had died of severe burn injuries.

Director of Ispat General Hospital Dr Sarojkant Mishra said: “(Ajit) Swain, who breathed his last around 1.05pm today, had suffered 100 per cent burn injuries. One more critically injured person — Buddhadev Minz — is still in the burn unit, struggling for his life. His kidneys have been damaged.”

There was marked improvement in the condition of two injured engineering students — Amaresh Moharana and Anup Kumar Swain.

Rourkela police, meanwhile, arrested the second accused, Sunil alias Philmunj Surin from Anthuguda under Hatibari police station, around 40km from Rourkela, today on charges of being a co-conspirator. He is alleged to have supplied a jerry can of petrol to the prime accused Akshay.

Anil Pradhan, inspector of Jhirpani police station, who nabbed Sunil from a relative’s house, said he was booked under Sections 341, 436, 326, 307 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code. Sunil, however, pleaded innocence. “I was not involved in the incident. I was in my house at the time it happened,” he said.

Sunil, a plumber by profession, admitted that he had been to the house of the accused on the morning of that fateful day. “I returned home around 11.30am after repairing taps. I don’t know what happened afterwards,” he said, denying the allegation that he had carried the petrol to the first floor and helped the main accused set fire to the room.

Inspector Pradhan, however, said there was prima facie evidence pointing to Sunil’s involvement in the crime.

The macabre incident had taken place when five engineering students were dining at a house which was allegedly set afire by its septuagenarian owner to settle scores with his sons.

One of the students was Anup Swain, grandson of the main accused. Akshay Swain (75) is a retired employee of Rourkela Steel Plant.

Anup and his father Ajit had sustained burn injuries along with four other engineering students and had been admitted to Ispat General Hospital at Rourkela.Sources said that septuagenarian Akshaya was not only unhappy with the behaviour of his sons — Ajit and Abhay — but also suspected them of trying to take forceful ownership of his property. He was looking for an opportunity to settle scores with them. He also resented the fact that Ajit was making money by converting the first floor of the house into a hostel for engineering students.