Another Uphaar accused moves court

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, JULY 13.

Another accused in the Uphaar fire tragedy case has moved the Delhi High Court challenging the trial court order framing charges against him in the case.

Mr. S.N. Dandona, then Executive Engineer of the Public Works Department (PWD), filed the revision petition through his counsel Mr. K.C. Chopra.

Mr. Sushil Ansal, chairman of the Ansal Industries and Properties Limited (AIPL), Nirmal Singh Chopra and R.M. Puri, assistant manager and one of the directors of the hall respectively, B.M. Satija, Beer Singh and Mr. A.K. Gera of the Delhi Vidyut Board (DVB) and Harswaroop Pawar, a retired official of the Delhi Fire Service have already challenged the lower court orders.

Mr. Justice R.C. Chopra of the High Court has reserved his orders on the revision petitions of Mr. Sushil Ansal and Mr. Nirmal Singh Chopra.

More than three years after the filing of the charge-sheet, the Additional Sessions Judge, Ms. Mamata Sehagal, had on April 9 framed charges against the 16 accused, including Sushil Ansal and his elder brother Gopal Ansal.

The accused had pleaded not guilty and claimed to face trial. The trial of the case has began, and the court has so far recorded the evidence of three prosecution witnesses, including that of Ms. Neelam Krishnamurthy, who had lost her two children in the tragedy.

The court found the 16 accused prima facie accountable for causing death by negligence and violating Section 14 of the Cinematography Act.

S.N. Dandona, Shyam Sundar Sharma, N.D. Tiwari, Harswaroop Panwar and Surender Dutt are facing trial for the above-mentioned offences under IPC.

R.M. Puri, R.K. Sharma, N.S. Chopra, Ajit Chaudhary, K.L. Malhotra and Manmohan Uniyal are facing trial for the offences of culpable homicide not amounting to murder as well as Section 14 of the Cinematographic Act while B.M. Satija, A.K. Gera and Beer Singh under Sections 304/337/338 r/w 34 of IPC.

As many as 59 persons were asphyxiated to death on June 13, 1997, in the tragedy while viewing the matinee show of the Hindi movie ``Border''.

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