20 days ago, owners of Rajkot gaming zone had applied for regularisation of tin shed: Police

The court of judicial magistrate (first class) BP Thakkar Friday sent the four officials — M D Sagathiya, Mukesh Makwana, Gautam Joshi and Rohit Vigora — to 12-day police remand after prosecution said that they had committed acts of illegal omission by not acting against the gaming zone for a full year.

According to Gokani, the regularisation application was filed after RMC’s town planning department served notices to the game zone in April and June last year warning to raze down the structure if the owners failed to remove it. He also informed the court that a fire had broken out at TRP Game Zone on September 4, 2023, after the notices were issued.

“It was an incident very similar to that of May 25 that claimed 26 innocent lives as well as that of one accused, but not on the same scale. Vigora (station officer in charge of the fire station on Kalavad Road) was on duty that day and was aware of the incident. He knew well that the gaming zone needed to obtain a fire NOC… Likewise, the three officers of the town planning department (Sagathiya, Makwana and Joshi) were also aware that the structure was illegal and was required to be demolished. Hence, they knew about the structure, took cognisance of the incident and yet, for a full year, the four officers told about it to none or take any action,” Gokani told the court, adding, “This was an act of illegal omission on their part”.

Seeking a 14-day remand of the accused, Gokani, on behalf of the Rajkot Crime Branch, also highlighted that Yuvrajsinh Solanki, one of the owners of the gaming zone, was also present when the fire broke out on September 4. “Despite all this, with the blessings of the accused persons, the gaming zone was not only running but was expanding, too,” he argued.

The counsel of the four accused, on the other hand, submitted that the investigating agency has already seized documentary evidence concerning the four officers and hence, there was no need for their custodial interrogation. The accused will present themselves whenever asked by the investigating officer, the court was told.

However, Gokani objected saying, “Merely seizure of documents is not enough. It is important to verify the contents of the documents seized and for that, custody of the accused is required,” said Gokani.

According to the Crime Branch, the owners were welding together a new structure for developing a snow park in the gaming zone when the welding sparks caused fire on May 25. “During the course of the work, someone suggested to them that the work (of fabrication and welding) shouldn’t be done during hours when the gaming zone is open to the public,” said Gokani, adding that suggestion was apparently overlooked.