[Rajkot TRP Gaming Zone Fire Incident] Deep Sense Of Pain The Way Officials Responded: Gujarat HC Seeks Personal Affidavit From Then Municipal Commissioners

The Court said that there was no expression of the feeling of remorse or any assurance to the Court that, in this case, the then Municipal Commissioners had exercised their supervisory powers diligently and were alerted about the TRP Gaming Zone coming up having been run for a period of two years, such a ghastly incident where 27 young people, middle-aged and child had died by burning alive, could have been avoided.

The bench of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice Pranav Trivedi observed, “…deep sense of pain and feeling of frustration, the way the response has been given by the officers with vehemence to the Court…We, therefore, call upon the Municipal Commissioners posted in the Rajkot Municipal Corporation between the years 2021 to May 2024 when the fire incident had occurred, to file their personal affidavits in response to the order dated 23.08.2024 passed by us.”

Senior Advocate Kamal Trivedi appeared for the Respondent.

By referring to the earlier order, the Court reiterated that a No objection certificate from the concerned fire department/authority will have to be produced before the competent authority that issues Building use permission/occupancy certificate in conformity with the Comprehensive General Development Control Regulations, 2017.

“This is a serious lapse on the part of the authorities of the Corporation and the Municipal Commissioner of the Corporation cannot shed his responsibility for exercise of supervision and control over the acts and proceedings of other officers and servants of the Corporation, under his supervisory role.”, the Court said.

The Court also noted that the incident has created a deep dent in the functioning of the officials of different Municipal Corporations in the State as admittedly many Gaming zones that flourished in the entire State prior to the incident have been closed or sealed on the ground that they were being run without proper Building Use Permission after the TRP Gaming Zone fire incident had occurred in May 2024.

The Court also required the advocate appearing for the Rajkot Municipal Corporation to place the entire original record about the demolition order passed by the Town Planning Officer including the notice of demolition etc., the regularisation application moved etc. before the incident.

The Court also granted time to the Director appointed under Section 6 of the Gujarat Fire Prevention and Life Safety Measures Act, 2013 to give a response by filing his personal affidavit, as to the exercise undertaken to strengthen the fire department of each Municipal Corporation, progress made in the matter of filling up the vacancies in the fire department etc.

The Court put up the matter for hearing on October 25, 2024.