Mundaka fire case: Delhi HC issues notice to police on bail plea of building owner
Feb 03, 2023
New Delhi [India], February 3 : The Delhi High Court on Friday issued notice to Delhi Police on the bail plea of Manish Lakra, the building owner accused in Delhi's Mundka fire case in which 27 people were killed that broke out on May last year.
Justice Yogesh Khanna issued the notice to the Delhi police and directed them to file a reply. The matter has also been listed for hearing on March 14 along with bail pleas of two other co-accused Harish and Varun Goyal.
The accused Manish Lakra has challenged the order of the trial court which denied him regular bail in the matter. His bail plea was rejected last month.
Lakra has moved the petition through advocate Pradeep Kumar Arya and advocate Kapil Dhaka.
Advocate Arya submitted that it is a case of section 304 of the IPC (Death due to a negligent act). Despite this, Delhi police have invoked section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder).
He argued and referred to the case of Union Carbide in which 1000 people died. Finally, the Supreme Court held that it was only a case of section 304A of IPC.
The petitioner had moved an application seeking bail over the non-filing of a chargesheet in the case. His plea was dismissed by the Magistrate Court on August 6, last year.
On May 13 last year, a fire broke out inside a building in the Mundka area in which 27 people were killed. An FIR was registered on May 14, under sections 308, 304, 120B and 34 of the IPC at Mundka Police Station.
The petitioner was arrested on May 15, 2022, and was produced before the court the next day. Thereafter he was sent to judicial custody. Under these circumstances, the petitioner is currently under police custody since May 15, 2022, i.e. around 80 days, the petition stated.
The magistrate court had granted bail to the wife of the accused Sunita Lakra and mother Sushila Lakra. They were summoned by the court after taking cognisance of the charge sheet. They were named as accused in the charge sheet, however, they had not been arrested during the investigation.
