Gujarat High Court Orders Fact Finding Inquiry Regarding Rajkot Gaming Zone Fire Incident

The Gujarat High Court directed to constitute a high level committee of three senior officers to conduct a fact-finding inquiry regarding Rajkot Gaming Zone Fire Incident to find out fault of erring officers of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation including the Municipal Commissioners posted from time.

The Court took suo motu cognizance of an unfortunate circumstance of a fire accident occurred in the T.R.P. gaming zone at Rajkot, claiming lives of around 25 persons, including the children.

A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice Pranav Trivedi said, “We, thus, find that the Principal Secretary, Urban Development and Urban Housing Department being the disciplinary head of the Urban Development and Urban Housing Department is required to constitute a high level committee of three senior officers within a period of three days to conduct a fact-finding inquiry to find out fault of erring officers of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation including the Municipal Commissioners posted from time, i.e. the first date when the first pillar was installed of the TRP gaming zone, till the date when the tragic incident of fire has occurred. In the exhaustive inquiry, which is to be conducted by the Principal Secretary, Urban Development and Urban Housing Department through the aid of the committee constituted by him, he shall not spare anyone found guilty or being irresponsible and all aspects of dereliction of duties or inaction on the part of the officers of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation shall be brought into light. The report shall be submitted to this Court by 4.7.2024.”

Advocate Amit M. Panchal represented the petitioner while Advocate General Kamal Trivedi and Additional Advocate General Manisha Lavkumar represented the respondents.

Factual Background -

The T.R.P. gaming zone at Rajkot wherein fire incident occurred that claimed 25 lives including the children, was an illegal construction. Taking note of the newspaper reports and the facts brought before the court by the amicus and further having taken judicial notice of the fact that several gaming zones have come up in the city of Ahmedabad as well, which may also pose threat to the public safety, the matter was posted on May 27, 2024 seeking presence of the panel advocates for the respective Municipal Corporations, to place before the Court the provisions of the laws whereunder the Corporations let these gaming zones, recreational facilities be set up or continued or put up to use. It was directed that the State as well as the respective corporations shall place as to in what manner and whether the licence including the licence to use and compliance of fire safety regulations were undertaken by these gaming zones in their territorial jurisdiction.

From the submissions of the counsels for the corporations, it was noted by the court that blatant inaction on the part of the authorities of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation was apparent. The said gaming zone was developed in June 2021 and the owners had applied for regularisation of the constructions under the provisions of the Gujarat Regularisation of Unauthorised Development Act, 2022 (GRUDA Act) after three years of setting up of the gaming zone. The construction was a fabricated steel frame structure with the boundaries made of steel patras. The Corporation took a stand that permission was granted by the City Police. Certain queries were made by the Corporation on an application filed by the owners and vide communication, queries were made with regard to the structural stability certificate and fire NOC. The owners were asked to produce the relevant documents to claim benefit of regularisation.

The High Court in the above context observed, “Taking note of the directions of the Apex Court in Avinash Mehrotra (supra), we further provide that the Principal Secretary, Education Department shall ensure that physical inspection of all the categories of schools in the State namely pre-primary or pre-school wherein the children upto the age of 3 to 6 years are studying including play schools, and primary, secondary and higher secondary schools, wherein the children between age of 6 to 14 years are studying, both established by the State and the private management (Public & Private) shall be carried out to report the fire safety measures in such schools, the training of the teachers alongwith other staff to handle safety equipment, initiation emergency evacuations and protect their students in the event of fire and other emergencies by the Fire and Rescue Department.”

To ensure that the School Building Specifications; Clearance and Certificates are granted after mandatory fire inspection by the Fire and Rescue Service Department by issuance of NOC to the school as a mandatory requirement for granting permission for establishing or continuation of the school. In essence, the Court ordered that inspection of all such schools is to be carried out strictly in compliance with the directions passed by the Apex Court and the report be submitted within a period of one month.

Furthermore, the Court mandated the Principal Secretary, the Education Department to see that the corrective measures are taken in respect of all the schools in the State of Gujarat for strict implementations of the directions.

“We also require that in overall supervising role of the State Government, an inquiry be conducted into the working of the Municipal Corporations in the State in view of recent incidents reflecting dereliction of duties on the part of the Municipal Commissioners of the respective Corporations in the State of Gujarat, which have become evident with the unfortunate incidents such as Morbi Bridge Collpase, Harni Lake boat tragedy and Rajkot TRP gaming zone fire incident”, it added.

The Court noted that such repeated incidents show that public places managed by the Corporations and the places of amusement where footfall of public is to a large extent, have been kept unsafe for human lives, because of dereliction in discharge of duties or inaction of the head of the institution.

“The Principal Secretary, Urban Development and Urban Housing Department, Government of Gujarat is required to take stringent action to put his house in order, inasmuch as, it is evident that the working of the Municipal Commissioners of the Corporations in the State has become aweigh. The Principal Secretary, Urban Development and Urban Housing Department, Government of Gujarat is required to take such stringent actions which act as deterrent for any such lapse on the part of these officers in future. A report with regard to the said inquiry and action taken by the concerned Principal Secretary, Urban Development and Urban Housing Department, Government Gujarat, shall also be submitted within a period of one month from today”, it concluded.

Accordingly, the High Court posted the case on July 4, 2024.

Cause Title- Suo Motu v. State of Gujarat & Ors.

Appearance:

Petitioner: Amicus Curiae D.M. Devnani, Advocates Amit M. Panchal and Angesh A. Panchal.

Respondents: AG Kamal Trivedi, AAG Manisha Lavkumar, AGP Vinay Bairaga, Advocates G.H. Virk, H.S. Munshaw, Kaushal D. Pandya, Dhaval G. Nanavati, and Chinmay M. Gandhi.

Click here to read/download the Order