The Gujarat high court on Thursday severely criticised the state government and municipal corporation for their negligence and lack of accountability in failing to enforce fire safety norms and questioned why the Rajkot municipal commissioner Anand Patel was merely transferred and not suspended over the Rajkot TRP Game Zone fire that killed 27 people.
A bench of justices Biren Vaishnav and Devan Desai, which initiated suo motu proceedings a day after the tragic fire on May 25, expressed strong displeasure after being told that the Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) served a demolition notice to TRP Game Zone in June last year but didn’t follow up on its notice.
Lawyer GH Virk, appearing for RMC, submitted an affidavit that confirmed that the facility hadn’t applied for clearance from RMC’s fire department, there were no checks conducted by the fire department at the site and that the facility was operating without permission from the police too.
The court was told that RMC’s Town Planning Department was aware of the illegal structure and issued a demolition notice in June 2023, following an earlier notice in April 2023 to remove the unauthorised construction under municipal laws.
Justice Vaishnav questioned why only the town planning officer was fired and municipal commissioner Anand Patel was spared.
“So you fired the town planning officer. But why was the then municipal commissioner not suspended? The responsibility lies at the top. A demolition order was passed in June 2023. Then what happened after that? You remained silent till 27 lives were lost. You did nothing for one year,” said Justice Vaishnav.
Justice Vaishnav even suggested invoking murder charges against the municipal commissioner, who was shunted out by the state government after the high court reprimanded the state at a previous hearing. He has not been given a fresh assignment so far.
An interim report of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) was also included in the state government’s affidavit. The government said it was amending its Comprehensive General Development Control Regulations, 2017, to include a separate chapter to regulate gaming activity areas.
The SIT, which was appointed to investigate the fire at TRP Game Zone in Rajkot, has indicated that the municipal corporation’s “serious negligence” led to the loss of lives.
Advocate General Kamal Trivedi assured the bench that action would be taken once the SIT submits its final report by June 20.
He added that RMC officers neither took action against the management nor brought the game zone issue to the municipal commissioner’s notice, and the SIT has named these officials, assuring they “cannot get away from the clutches of law.”
When Trivedi mentioned that officials cannot be sent to the gallows without a probe in a democratic country such as India, Justice Vaishnav said: “They have to go to the gallows if they are guilty.”
“This time, we want to see that no municipal commissioner, incumbent or present, of all municipal corporations, must be held personally liable for such incidents. They cannot just sit in officers and pass on the buck.”
The bench will resume the hearing on June 13.
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Aisha Patel is a dedicated Indian correspondent with a deep understanding of the nation’s diverse affairs. With a background in Indian culture, politics, and current events, she provides in-depth analysis and timely reporting on domestic issues within India.
