A Mumbai court in Bhoiwada on Thursday rejected the bail applications submitted by the five accused in the Kamala Mills fire case, ANI reported. The blaze on December 29, 2017, killed 14 people in the compound in Lower Parel.
Owners of the 1Above resto-bar Jigar Sanghvi, Kripesh Sanghvi and Abhijit Mankar, as well as the owners of the adjoining Mojo’s Bistro, Yug Pathak and Yugi Tulli had filed bail petitions. The owners of both resto-bars were booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder and other sections under the Indian Penal Code.
On Monday, the Mumbai Police had opposed their bail pleas while arguing that the accused may try to tamper with the evidence or influence the witnesses, The Hindu reported.
A Mumbai fire brigade report had concluded that the blaze originated at Mojo’s Bistro and not at 1Above. But the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation recommended criminal action against the owners, architects and interior designers of both restaurants. In its report, the BMC said the fire started at Mojo’s Bistro and spread rapidly to the 1Above restaurant. The blaze started because of the hookah being served “illegally” in Mojo’s Bistro.
The restaurant had covered the terrace partially without permission and had used combustible material for its construction, the BMC said. The 1Above restaurant also had flammable materials and it caught fire soon after.
On January 22, the Mumbai Police had arrested the owner of the Kamala Mills compound Ramesh Govani. They had taken Ravi Bhandari, a partner in Kamala Mills, fire station officer Rajendra Patil and the owner of Nirvana Hookah, Utkarsh Pandey into custody on January 21.
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