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Uphaar hearing stalls before judicial excuse

Suhasini Haidar in New Delhi

The Uphaar fire case, wherein 59 people died in June 1997, was adjourned today after Additional Sessions Judge S C Mittal excused himself from the hearing.

Judge Mittal, who was to have taken up the case filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation against cinema owner Sushil Ansal, the Delhi Fire Brigade, the civic authorities, and others, said he was unable to do so as his daughter had worked on an architectural project with Ansal some years ago.

Ansal, a property developer in Delhi, was present in court, but refused to comment.

Members of the Association of the Victims of the Uphaar Tragedy, who had gathered at the court, were disappointed.

J S Mann, who lost five members of his family, including wife and son, in the tragedy, said he was disappointed by the slow pace of the case. "I wish people would realise that none of us is pushing this for ourselves," he said. "I have lost everything, and can gain nothing from it. We are fighting only to ensure that this kind of tragedy doesn't happen to anyone else."

The tragedy that occurred during the screening of the Hindi film Border was caused by a fire that started in the basement of the theatre.

As the lights in the cinema hall went out, the audience panicked and tried to open doors. Unfortunately, theatre staff had locked some of the doors from outside to prevent crowds from forcing their way in to see the film.

In the confusion that resulted, 59 persons, including 26 children, died of suffocation and injuries resulting from the stampede.

Since the incident, several causes that compounded the number of casualties have come to light. These include improper licensing for the theatre, negligence on the part of the management and staff, and ill-equipped ambulance and emergency medical facilities.

The AVUT, which comprises family members of the victims, has also filed a separate Rs1.22 billion suit against the Ansal Group. They plan to use the money to set up a centralised accident and trauma service.

The private suit will come up for hearing in the Delhi high court in April.

The CBI case will now be sent back to the chief metropolitan magistrate, who will reallocate it to another judge on Wednesday.

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