Gujarat HC issues notice to accused in Morbi bridge collapse case, state govt

The single judge bench of Justice Sandeep Bhatt was hearing the petition filed by Narendra Parmar, who had lost his daughter Dhwani in the tragedy of October 30, 2022.

Through his advocate Utkarsh Dave, Parmar moved the Gujarat HC challenging the September 17 order of the Principal Judge of Morbi, which had dismissed the application seeking further investigation carried out in the Morbi Bridge tragedy.

The petition states that the Principal Sessions Judge of Morbi had rejected the application seeking the addition of Section 302 IPC and also making Ajanta an accused on grounds that the victims had “not undertaken any exercise in consultation with the state government for obtaining permission of the court to engage private advocates” and private advocates “cannot make submissions on behalf of private persons” as per the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, as argued by the prosecution.

Parmar also sought interim relief in staying the trial until the HC petition is disposed of.

The petition adds that the trial court dismissed the petition of the victims on the grounds, stating that “there is not even an iota of evidence on record, which would show that the accused had intentionally committed the criminal act with the knowledge that such an act would, most likely, cause death.”