Cops still await BMC sanction to file charge sheet against officials

Sanction from civic body is mandatory in the case as the two accused were on the rolls at the time of their arrest

The footover bridge outside CSMT collapse on March 14 during the evening peak hours, killing seven people. File pics

The Azaad Maidan Police are yet to get the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporations's sanction to file a supplementary chargesheet against BMC officials who were arrested in the CSMT Bridge collpase of March 14. Despite several reminders sent to civic officials the sanction has not been granted to the police, while the deadline for filing a chargesheet was May 30. On May 9, the police had filed the first chargesheet against Neeraj Desai (director of DD Desai firm) responsible for the audit of the bridge.

Since both accused, Sandeep Kakulte, 44, and Anil Patil, 53, were serving as civic officials in the engineering department at the time of their arrest, police need a sanction from the BMC before filing the chargesheet against them. If the sanction is not received, the court will not take cognizance of the chargesheet. As per CrPc 167 (2), if the police fail to file a chargesheet in the given time frame, the accused become eligible for a default bail. According to sources, the supplementary chargesheet is ready with just the BMC's sanction awaited.

BMC mum on reminders

The Azad Maidan Police said that they had written four letters to the BMC seeking their sanction but did not receive any reply. The first letter was dated May 6 and the rest were sent of May 13, 22, and 27. The case involves IPC section 304 (II), where the maximum punishment is 10 years, and the police must file a chargesheet within 60 days of registering an offence. "The content of the chargesheet is almost ready. The moment we get a sanction, the supplementary chargesheet will be completed," said an officer on the condition of anonymity.

The March 14 incident

Seven people were killed and over 30 injured when the footover bridge outside the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus collapsed on March 14. The police have so far arrested four accused in the case including two BMC officials.

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