Kamala mills fire: Activists fear for officials named in BMC chief's report

The fire at Kamala Mills took place early on December 29 2017After the release of the civic commissioners report on the Kamala Mills fire Mumbai activists are concerned about the safety of some of the officials whose names have been made public in it They also fear that civic officials naming their superiors see box 1 in statements given during inquiry can be pressured to retract them which might derail crucial evidence against the accused Advocate Godfrey Pimenta of Watch Dog Foundation has informed the Mumbai Police Commissioner and civic chief the apprehensionsAlso read Mumbai Kamala Mills owner Ramesh Govani arrestedFear for their livesSpeaking to midday Pimenta said We have gone through the contents of the report prepared by civic chief Ajoy Mehta We observed that many officials of BMC Fire Department etc have been named both at senior and junior levels in it Certain junior officials have blamed their superiors in their statements claiming they were asked to stop demolition drives a few months before the mishap These statements will ultimately land the senior official in trouble in futureWe apprehend that there is a possibility of the senior officials putting pressure on the person to retract the statement recorded We also fear for their lives and therefore requested the concerned heads to take adequate safety precautions in the larger public interest said PimentaProbe raises serious doubtsNitai Mehta of Praja Foundation also had similar views The manner in which the inquiry was conducted and the way the officials names have been revealed in the final report only shows that the probe was done with vested interests and raises serious doubtsAnother activist said The civic chief firstly should not have conducted the probe and even if he did conduct it he should have shared it with the police chief so that they could have recorded the statements of key witnesses who could have spoken against their superiors before a magistrate under section 163 of the Criminal Procedure Code so that the statements cannot be retracted Asked if the statement given in the civic chiefs report can be used during the course of trial Pimenta said the statements are collateral evidence and can be corroborated during the course of trialFrom the civic chiefs reportGist of the statement by Dinesh Yashwant Mahale SEBampF Gsouth Mahale worked as SE B amp F from 01102015 till the date of suspension ie 29122017 He has stated that the premises were visited by him for inspection so as to issue notices to initiate action against the illegal constructions uSec 351 of MMC Act and uSec 55 of MR amp TP Act respectively The said notices were served by his office on 31052017 and 01072017 and finally on 02082017 the demolition was undertakenHe stated that he had observed an unauthorised shed to cover an open terrace and other unauthorised works and accordingly the notices were served They demolished about 7080 of the structure and thereafter it was stopped after telephonic orders from the Asst Commissioner GSouth Asked whether action was initiated in the past at the fire site and to provide dates and details he stated that the demolition was carried out at Mojos Bistro and 1 Above on 2082017 However the past record of the said beat was not handed over from his predecessor and so he was not aware of the demolition action or other matters thenWrit petition in City Kinara case filedUnhappy with the probe in the City Kinara fire incident at Kurla in 2015 in which eight including seven students of Don Bosco Institute of Technology were killed the students parents have filed a writ petition in Bombay High Court Advocate Pimenta said All the parents have filed a writ petition before a division bench through their lawyer Jayesh MestryHe said We have come across numerous discrepancies in the investigation and subsequent action taken by both local police and the civic department For instance no action was taken against the local LPG supplier even after the fire report specifically stated action be taken against the LPG dealer who supplied the gas to the hotel though the hotelier was not an authorised consumerThe hotelier did not have the Fire Brigades NOC but still the local BMC office issued his hotel a health and a shop and establishment licence14Number of people killed in the fireCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news current affairs from Mumbai local news crime news and breaking headlines hereDownload the new midday Android and iOS apps to get updates on all the latest and trending stories on the go