The Goa bench of the Bombay High Court converted a civil claim over the Birch nightclub fire into a PIL, stressing accountability.
The court flagged failures by the local panchayat and noted the club operated despite a demolition order.
The state government has been asked to explain how licences were granted; next hearing is on January 8.
A civil claim against Birch by Romeo Lane at Arpora, where a horrific fire on December 6 killed 25 people, was converted into a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) by the Bombay High Court's Goa bench on Monday, noting that "someone has to be held accountable in such kind of cases."
Additionally, the HC requested a response from the state government regarding the licenses given to the disastrous nightclub.
The proprietors of the property where the nightclub was located, Pradeep Ghadi Amonkar and Sunil Divkar, filed the petition.
The division bench of Justices Sarang Kotwal and Ashish Chavan declared that "someone has to be held accountable in such kind of cases" and turned it into a PIL.
It was observed that the local panchayat had failed to take suo motu cognisance of the club and had taken no action despite complaints.
Commercial operations were going on in the structure despite it having served a demolition order, the HC bench pointed out.
Advocate Rohit Bras de Sa, the lawyer representing Amonkar and Divkar, was made amicus curiae in the matter and has been asked to file a detailed affidavit in the matter.
The bench asked the Goa government to reply to the process for granting permissions to such establishments.
The HC bench fixed January 8 as the next date for hearing in the matter.
A civil claim against Birch by Romeo Lane at Arpora, where a horrific fire on December 6 killed 25 people, was converted into a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) by the Bombay High Court's Goa bench on Monday, noting that "someone has to be held accountable in such kind of cases."
Additionally, the HC requested a response from the state government regarding the licenses given to the disastrous nightclub.
The proprietors of the property where the nightclub was located, Pradeep Ghadi Amonkar and Sunil Divkar, filed the petition.
The division bench of Justices Sarang Kotwal and Ashish rpt Ashish Chavan declared that "someone has to be held accountable in such kind of cases" and turned it into a PIL.
