This is an archive article published on January 19, 2024
SIT formed to probe Vadodara boat capsize incident
The SIT is on the lookout for the 15 partners of the company contracted by the Vadodara Municipal Corporation to operate Lake Zone, the boating facility where 12 students and two teachers died on Thursday.
A day after 12 students and two teachers died after the boat they were on capsized in the Lake Zone boating facility at Harni in Gujarat’s Vadodara, the Vadodara police commissioner on Friday formed a special investigation team (SIT) comprising seven police officers to probe the incident.
The Vadodara city police SIT, headed by Joint Commissioner of Police Manoj Ninama, is on the lookout for the 15 partners of M/s Kotia Projects, a company contracted by the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) to operate Lake Zone. The partners are among the 18 accused in the FIR lodged at Harni police station late on Thursday night.
The SIT formed by Vadodara Police Commissioner Anupam Singh Gahlaut includes two supervision officers – Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Zone 4, Panna Momaya and DCP (Crime) Yuvrajsinh Jadeja. Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Harpalsinh Rathod is the investigating officer and will be assisted by Police Inspectors C B Tandel of Harni police station and M F Chaudhari of Crime Branch, along with Police Sub-Inspector P M Dhakda of the Detection of Crime Branch (DCB).
The order constituting the SIT states that the team has been formed to “conduct a deep inquiry into all aspects of the case and also ensure that all (18) accused are arrested in the case at the earliest”. The case has been transferred from Harni police station to the Crime Branch, to be investigated by ACP Rathod, the order signed by Gahlaut states.
Speaking to The Indian Express, DCP Crime Jadeja said that the police have arrested three accused so far – all employees of the Lake Zone, including the two boatmen allegedly responsible for overloading the boat.
“Three of the 18 accused, including two boatmen, have been arrested… We are looking for 15 partners, whose names are officially on the list of M/s Kotia Projects. There are names of other persons, who were running the day-to-day business at the Lake Zone, but those will be added to the FIR in the course of the investigation. Prima facie, it appears that the partnership firm had family members of the Kotia and Shah families. None of them are currently at their addresses. We have launched a search to nab them and track down their locations,” Jadeja said.
Jadeja added that although the FIR has been filed based on the complaint of the VMC’s Executive Engineer of the Futuristic Planning Cell Rajesh Chauhan, the police are investigating the liability of the civic body in the case. “During the course of the investigation, if it is found that there was negligence on the part of the civic body and its officers, they will also be booked accordingly. We are investigating the case in all aspects,” Jadeja said.
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The 18 people named as accused include Binit Kotia (32), Hitesh Kotia (55), Gopaldas Shah (58), Vatsak Shah (25), Dipen Shah (24), Dharmil Shah (27), Rashmikant Prajapati (38), Jatin Doshi (64), Neha Doshi (30), Tejal Doshi (46), Bhimsinh Yadav (36), Ved Prakash Yadav (50), Dharmin Bhatani (34), Nutan Shah (48), Vaishakhi Shah (22), Lake Zone manager Shantilal Solanki as well as boat operators Nayan Gohil and Ankit.
Solanki, Gohil and Ankit were arrested on Thursday. All accused have been booked under Indian Penal Code sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 308 (attempt to culpable homicide), 337 (rash or negligent act endangering human life) and 114 (abettor present when crime committed).
Aditi Raja is an Assistant Editor with The Indian Express, stationed in Vadodara, Gujarat, with over 20 years in the field. She has been reporting from the region of Central Gujarat and Narmada district for this newspaper since 2013, which establishes her as a highly Authoritative and Trustworthy source on regional politics, administration, and critical socio-economic and environmental issues.
Expertise:
Core Authority & Specialization: Her reporting is characterized by a comprehensive grasp of the complex factors shaping Central Gujarat, which comprises a vast tribal population, including:
Politics and Administration: In-depth analysis of dynamics within factions of political parties and how it affects the affairs in the region, visits of national leaders making prominent statements, and government policy decisions impacting the population on ground.
Crucial Regional Projects: She consistently reports on the socio-economic and political impact of infrastructure projects in the region, especially the Statue of Unity, the Sardar Sarovar Project on the Narmada River, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail bullet train project as well as the National Highway infrastructure.
Social Justice and Human Rights: Her reporting offers deep coverage of sensitive human-interest topics, including gender, crime, and tribal issues. Her reports cover legal proceedings from various district courts as well as the Gujarat High Court (e.g., the Bilkis Bano case remission, POCSO court orders, Public Interest Litigations), the plight of tribal communities, and broader social conflicts (e.g., Kheda flogging case).
Local Impact & Disaster Reporting: Excels in documenting the immediate impact of events on communities, such as the political and civic fallout of the Vadodara floods, the subsequent public anger, and the long-delayed river redevelopment projects, Harni Boat Tragedy, Air India crash, bringing out a blend of stories from the investigations as well as human emotions.
Special Interest Beat: She tracks incidents concerning Non-Resident Gujaratis (NRIs) including crime and legal battles abroad, issues of illegal immigration and deportations, as well as social events connecting the local Gujarati experience to the global diaspora. ... Read More
