Fire in gambling zone in Rajkot: Gujarat government suspends 7 officials, including 2 policemen, for ‘neglect of duty’ | Ahmedabad News

A A massive fire broke out in the indoor play area in Rajkot city ​​on Saturday, killing 28 people, including children, and injuring nine. The TRP game zone did not have a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the fire department, according to officials. (https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/ahmedabad/gujarat-rajkot-game-zone-fire-kills-9353415/)

An official press release from the state government said the officials were suspended on the instructions of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, who visited the fire site in Rajkot on Sunday. It said the officials “allowed the opening of the gaming zone without the necessary permissions, thereby showing utter negligence and dereliction of duty”.

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Police Inspectors Patel and Rathod processed an application from Raceway Enterprise, one of the operating companies of TRP Gaming Zone, for a booking licence for their park under the Gujarat Entertainment Tax Act last year. On receiving the application, the office of the Rajkot City Police Commissioner forwarded it to the Inspector of Rajkot Taluka Police Station for his opinion.

In response, Patel sent his statement on November 17, 2023, stating that it was a fit case for grant of license. The suspension order said he had done so without due diligence. “Prima facie, it appears that he has grossly breached his duties by giving a positive opinion when the file did not contain the NOC certificate from the Fire Service or the NOC from the PGVCL,” the order said.

The suspension order against Rathod states that as an inspector in charge of the Licensing Department, he forwarded the file to the Office of the Commissioner of Police without due diligence.

The directions issued by a deputy secretary of the Roads and Works Department said that Suma had submitted his favourable opinion on Raceway Enterprise’s application without conducting on-site inspection of the plan submitted by the applicant and Kothiya had not conducted on-site inspection despite his department’s directions.

In his order suspending Chaudhary and Joshi, Rajkot Municipal Councillor Anand Patel stressed that they had not taken any action against the TRP gambling zone even though the operators had not sought permission for their structure, a shed made of sheet metal and steel frame.

As for Vigora, his suspension notice states that he did not take any action when the TRP gaming zone ‘TRP Mall’ was being set up and was able to operate without a NOC from the fire department despite being assigned the task of supervising the fire and rescue services in the area. He is also responsible for spot checks for the purpose of NOC from the fire department, it said.

The police have charged six people with premeditated murder and arrested one of the co-owners of the gaming area and a manager of the facility. The bodies of the fire victims were charred beyond recognition and the police, with the help of the forensic laboratory in Gandhinagar, are trying to establish the identities of the victims by matching their DNA with that of the relatives of the missing persons. The government has set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT)led by Deputy Director General of Police (CID-Crime) Subhash Trivedi, is to investigate the accident. The team has been asked to submit a preliminary report within three days, followed by a final report within 10 days.