The Bharatiya Janata Mazdoor Cell (BJMC), linked to the ruling BJP, has filed a police complaint against former Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim and two councillors in connection with the Taratala warehouse collapse, which killed 16 people.
In the complaint, filed on Friday evening, the BJMC alleged that repeated collapses of illegal buildings and godowns in the Kolkata Port area killed several innocent lives and that these structures were allowed despite posing grave risks to public safety.
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“These incidents do not appear to be mere accidents but raise serious concerns regarding unauthorised constructions, gross negligence, and possible criminal conspiracy,” reads the complaint.
Besides Hakim, the complaint also names Ward 80 councillor Anwar Khan and Ward 134 councillor Shams Iqbal.
The BJMC’s complaint demanded the immediate registration of an FIR and an impartial investigation against the three people, as well as the identification of everyone responsible for illegal constructions and the deaths caused by the collapses. It also demanded the arrests of Hakim and the two councillors if they are found responsible for granting illegal approvals or permitting unauthorised construction.
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The BJMC also urged authorities to inspect all unsafe structures in the area and take preventive measures to avoid further loss of life.
Firhad Hakim’s aide arrested
After the roof of the under-construction warehouse caved in at Taratala on Wednesday afternoon, the police arrested Hakim’s former officer on special duty, Kalicharan Banerjee. An Alipore court has sent him to police custody till July 4.
Meanwhile, Hakim told reporters that the civic body gave sanction for the warehouse because its building plan had approval.
The warehouse was being built by Behera Brothers on a leasehold plot owned by the Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port in the city. (Express Photo)
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