Rajkot fire: Game zone owner laughing in court, says prosecutor
What's the story
Two days after a fire at a game zone in Rajkot, Gujarat, that led to the death of 28 people, the police have made another arrest.
Four men have been arrested so far, with three sent to police custody for two weeks.
The main accused, Dhaval Thakkar, was arrested on Monday.
Notably, Thakkar, proprietor of Dhaval Corporation, partnered with Raceway Enterprises's Ashoksinh Jadeja, Kiritsinh Jadeja, Prakashchand Hiran, Yuvrajsinh Solanki, and Rahul Rathod to run the game zone.
Courtroom drama
Extended police custody sought for lack of cooperation
Meanwhile, Special Public Prosecutor Tushar Gokani, while seeking custody, told the Gujarat court that the accused were giving "evasive replies" to the officials.
"When asked about certain documents, the accused claimed they got burnt in the fire. The main ground for their remand is to seek their cooperation and elicit the truth," Gokani told the court.
He said that one of the accused Yuvrajsinh Solanki tried to put up an act before the court to fake remorse for the tragedy.
Behavior shift
Accused's behavior in court raises eyebrows
"When he entered the court, he tried to project that he had remorse for the incident, and everyone felt that he was crying. After five minutes, he was laughing and arguing with the court," Gokani said.
"The accused said that 'these kinds of things happen,' which was taken in a serious note by the honourable court," said Gokani.
Investigation hurdles
Extended police custody sought for lack of cooperation
The accused have been booked under Indian Penal Code Sections 304 (culpable homicide), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 337 (causing hurt by an act that endangers the life or personal safety of others), 338 (causing grievous hurt to a person by doing an act that endangers their life or personal safety) and 114 (someone present when the offence is committed).
Following the incident, the Gujarat government ordered the suspension of seven officials for dereliction of duty.
On Monday
HC slams Gujarat government, municipal body over Rajkot fire tragedy
On Monday, the Gujarat High Court rapped the state government and the municipal body over the fire at the gaming zone.
The court was informed that these gaming zones had been operating without necessary permits for over two years.
"This has been going on for two-and-a-half years (referring to the Rajkot gaming zone). Are we to assume you turned a blind eye? What do you and your followers do?" the court said.