An 18-year-old student, a friend of one of the victims of the fire in a restaurant in Kamala Mills on December 29, moved the Bombay High Court seeking justice for the 14 victims of the tragedy.
Garv Sud, who is pursuing B.Sc. in Industrial Economics at University of Nottingham, said, “I felt nobody would actually go out of their way to initiate a petition and move the court. I had to do this for my own conscience. That is what urged me to file this petition.”
Mr. Sud, who had come home for the Christmas vacation, said, “One of victims of the fire was a good friend of mine. She was my neighbour and I used to keep meeting her. Now I won’t get to see her ever again. This is very saddening.”
‘Basic measures ignored’
Mr. Sud said that it was worrying that many bars and restaurants in the city were not fire-compliant. He said, “Taking fire safety measures is a basic thing that restaurant owners can easily focus on. So many lives could be saved. It is disturbing to know that one of the victims was celebrating her birthday at the restaurant.”
Mr. Garv’s petition seeks compensation for the families of the victims and a investigation into the fire by the Central Bureau of Investigation. The petition is likely to come up for hearing on January 4.
Mr. Garv had also sent several emails to the Joint Commissioner of Police and authorities of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation informing them about the petition.
Mr. Garv said, “Investigative agencies usually only question the owners of the bar and restaurant in such cases. The main purpose of my petition is to point out that the owners of the plot who leased their property to these restaurants should also be held responsible for the tragedy.”
Mr. Garv said that he had filed the petition not just to demand justice for his friend but for all victims of the tragedy. He said, “I am trying to make sure that nothing like this ever happens again.”
