City Kinara hotel fire: 'Are shops trying to tamper with evidence?'

Tea and paan stalls have come up on the premises of City Kinara hotel at Kurla West where eight people had died in a blaze back in 2015

Since 2015, the parents of seven college students who were charred to death in a fire at Kurla's City Kinara hotel have been fighting a legal battle to get justice and compensation, but some alleged illegal encroachments on the hotel premises have messed up the case. They have now filed a complaint through Watch Dog Foundation with the local ward office asking them to demolish the structures (tea stall and paan shop), which they feel is nothing but an attempt to tamper with evidence. While hearing of a criminal case in the matter is pending in the Kurla magistrate court, a case through which the parents have sought compensation is pending in the Bombay High Court. Meanwhile, activists supporting the parents have demanded action against those involved in setting up the illegal shops.

The mother of one of the students who had died in the incident, Jacqueline D'souza, said, "I lost my son Erwin D'souza in the fire, which also claimed seven other lives. We are awaiting justice since 2015 and now we get to know that two tea and pan shops are operating on the hotel premises. When the matter is pending in two courts, how can the premises be allowed to be used. We will be forced to protest if the authorities concerned does not take action at the earliest." She further said, "Some parents were shocked when they confronted the vendors, who claimed to have permission from the BMC's L ward office."

Cause of fire unknown
Advocate Godfrey Pimenta, representing the parents, said, "The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained. Three agencies - PWD, fire brigade and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) have given three different causes for the fire. In order to speed up the trial of the criminal case, it's important to preserve the property. Tampering with the property without judicial permission might lead to acquittal of accused Sharad Tripathi, who was running the hotel at the time of incident."

According to Pimenta, the police charge sheet mentions that the fire reports submitted by the three agencies contradict each other.

While the fire brigade claims that leaked LPG from a cylinder had come in contact with unknown ignition sources, HPCL has said that the blaze might have been due to a short circuit. However, PWD could not ascertain the cause of the fire as the entire mezzanine floor was gutted and no evidence was left.

He further said that if the fire happened due to a cylinder blast, then each of the deceased's kin was entitled to a compensation of R40 lakh as per the Public Liability Insurance Act. "Also the possibility of the magistrate insisting on visiting the hotel during trial for appreciating the prosecution evidence cannot be ruled out and therefore, it was the sole responsibility of both the local police station and ward office to ensure that the premises was not illegally encroached upon. The worst is that even after making an official complaint to the L ward office, no step was taken to demolish the structures which have come up over the past two weeks," he added.

'Initiate action'
Nicholas Alemida of Watch Dog Foundation, said, "I have made a written complaint to both the L ward office and police commissioner, telling them to initiate action against the violator, but till now nothing has happened. It is unfortunate that such violations are happening right under the authorities' noses."

When contacted, Manish Valunj, assistant municipal commissioner, L ward, said, "I am not aware of this. I'll have to check with the health department, as they issue licences. But I doubt any such permission has been granted, especially when the matter is pending before the court. We will inspect the place and if anything illegal is found, action will be taken."

Senior Police Inspector Rajesh Pawar of Vinoba Bhave Nagar station said, "We have not received any complaint regarding the matter. Will get information and look into the matter."

The incident dates back to year 2015

Seven students from Don Bosco and a design engineer were among the eight people who died in the fire that broke out at City Kinara hotel on October 15, 2015. The police had arrested the man running the hotel without the requisite permission. The Lokayukta had given a compensation of R1 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased a couple of months after the incident.

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