Morbi bridge collapse: Court sends Oreva MD Jaysukh Patel to judicial custody
Feb 08, 2023
Morbi (Gujarat) [India], February 8 : The Morbi Court on Wednesday sent the Managing Director of Oreva Group, Jaysukh Patel, to judicial custody after his police remand ended on Wednesday in connection with the 2022 Morbi suspension bridge collapse case, that claimed 134 lives.
Jaysukh Patel was sent to police custody by the Morbi Court earlier on January 31.
He earlier surrendered before the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate in Morbi.
Patel has been sent to a sub-jail in Morbi.
People who lost their loved ones also raised slogans outside the court premises against Patel.
Earlier this month, Gujarat Police filed a 1,262-page chargesheet in the case and named Jaysukh Patel as the prime accused for the suspension bridge collapse in Morbi.
On January 24, a Gujarat court had issued a warrant for the arrest of Jaysukh Patel of the Oreva Group in relation to the October 30 bridge collapse in Morbi in which 134 people were killed.
Ajanta Manufacturing Limited (Oreva Group) had secured the contract to renovate, repair and operate the British-era bridge on the Machchu river in Morbi.
On January 29, the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Morbi, MJ Khan, issued an arrest warrant against Patel under section 70 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).
"The court issued an arrest warrant against Jaysukh Patel of Oreva Group, which had a contract for the renovation of the Morbi bridge. He has not been arrested for 70 days.
"No lookout notice issued yet," Government prosecutor Sanjay Vora had told ANI.
Notably, Patel had moved to Morbi sessions court on January 20 for anticipatory bail in the case, while the hearing was adjourned till February 1 as the public prosecutor was not present.
Patel is not named as an accused in the FIR filed by the police in the case.
Nine persons, including four employees of Ajanta Manufacturing (Oreva Group), have been arrested so far in the case. They include two managers and an equal number of ticket booking clerks of the Oreva Group that was managing the British-era bridge.
As many as 134 persons lost their lives after a century-old suspension bridge fell into the Machchhu River of Morbi, Gujarat.
Gujarat High Court on November 7 took suo motu cognisance of the Morbi accident, issuing notices to officials, including those of the state Home department and seeking a report within a week.
The Supreme Court in November said the Morbi bridge collapse incident was an "enormous tragedy", as it asked the Gujarat High Court, which was already holding hearings in the matter suo motu, to hold periodical hearings.
