Families of Uphaar victims recall 1997 ‘mass murder’

Tuesday marked 20 years of fire that claimed 59 lives

Emotion unbridled: A man remembering a loved one on the 20th anniversary of the Uphaar tragedy.

Smiling mugshots of 51 victims of the Uphaar fire tragedy that killed 59 people in 1997 were placed side by side on a red board with a garland of white flowers; their families, clad in white, looked on, reminiscing the years gone by.

Tuesday marked 20 years of the incident. The 28 families which have been fighting a battle against owners of Uphaar cinema, the Ansals, came together opposite the theatre at Smriti Upavan to remember their loved ones, and “… pray not for justice, but for those who seek justice in this country…,” as a poster read. Another said: “Uphaar case: You can get away with mass murder,” The families believe that justice has not only been delayed but also denied in the case.

Neelam Krishnamoorthy, president of the Association of the Victims of Uphaar Tragedy, ‘the pillar’ of the battle, told

The Hindu that the fight was far from over.

“We’ll file a curative petition ... there are other cases we are fighting against the Ansals. There are people languishing in jails and Sushil Ansal goes scot free because of his age and his brother Gopal Ansal gets one year jail term. This is absolute injustice,” she said.