Uphaar Fire tragedy: Businessman Gopal Ansal moves Delhi HC challenging his conviction in evidence tampering case

Real estate businessman Gopal Ansal has moved the Delhi High Court challenging his conviction and sentence for tampering with evidence in the case related to the 1997 Uphaar cinema fire tragedy, in which 59 people were killed.

Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav tagged the plea of Gopal Ansal with other connected matters and listed it in the regular list.

The trial court passed a judgment on July 18, upholding Ansal's conviction. On July 19, the Court reduced the sentence earlier awarded to the petitioner for the period already undergone subject to payment of a fine of Rs 3 crore within seven days.

Ansal challenged the trial court judgement by submitting that none of the circumstances as alleged by the prosecution is conclusive in nature and neither do they establish the guilt of the accused. There is nothing on record to show that the circumstances can lead to a level of suspicion that they committed the offence in all human probability, the petition said.

It also said that the judgment passed by the trial court was totally perverse and against the well-settled propositions of law and criminal jurisprudence. The conclusion drawn by the trial court is totally misconstrued based on the mis-interpretation of fact as well as the law on the basis of assumptions, presumptions, surmises and conjectures.

It has been further submitted that in the present case there is neither any circumstantial evidence nor any material on record, on the basis of which a reasonable ground to believe that the present appellant was a part of the conspiracy.

In view of the fact and circumstances mentioned, the judgment passed by the trial court may be set aside and the present Appellant may be honorably acquitted, it added.

Earlier, the Association of The Victims of Uphaar Tragedy (AVUT) had moved Delhi HC against the Trial court order which had reduced the Ansal Brother's jail term in the said evidence tampering case linked to the Uphaar fire tragedy of 1997. In the fire tragedy, 59 people were killed and over 100 others were injured.

AVUT also challenged the July 18 order passed by the Principal District and Sessions Judge of Patiala House Court which had reduced real estate baron Ansal brothers' 7-year jail term to the "period already undergone" in judicial custody in the case.

Senior Advocate Vikas Pahwa appeared for the AVUT and sought the direction of the Delhi High court to set aside the order passed on July 18 and also issue direction to enhance the sentence awarded by the Principal District and Sessions Judge from the period already undergone to the original sentence of seven years awarded by the Magistrate Court in the order dated November 8, 2021.

The victim association through Senior Advocate Vikas Pahwa submitted that the Trial Court order is contrary to the established principles of law on sentencing and is ignorant of the conduct and criminal antecedents of the accused. Through their acts, the accused have tried to meddle with the functioning of the judicial system and the impugned judgement fails to appreciate the gravity of the offences committed by them, the AVUT plea stated.

The Trial Court, while reducing the jail term of convicts, had increased a fine of Rs 3 Crores to each of them in three sections related to the conspiracy, criminal breach of trust and destruction of evidence. Earlier the lower court had imposed a fine of Rs 2.25 Crores each on them.

The Principal District and Sessions Judge Dharmesh Sharma had observed: the whole tone and tenor of the order on Sentence of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) to be 'punitive and retributive,' considering the nature of the crime, the social and economic status of the appellants (convicts), the duration of crime committed and ultimate impact on the speed of the trial in the main Uphaar case and the mitigating circumstances brought forth by the learned Counsel for the appellants to hold that quantum of sentence of imprisonment awarded by the Trial Court was harsh and disproportionate to the offence committed.

It further observed, "At the cost of repetition, this Court understands that the Uphaar fire tragedy was the one where several lives were lost and many were injured that must have caused a deep anguish, pain and perennial misery to the affected family members and it is to comprehend that family members would not be able to forget such incident and forgive the offenders", the court observed in the order.

"It strikes to human notions and understanding that the surviving family members who have now joined together by forming an association 'AVUT' do not want the culprits to go scot-free and enjoy any rights and liberties in the remainder of their lives but this whole criminal litigation cannot be converted by the prosecution into an inhumane and vindictive approach to the present appellants/convicts."

The Court sentenced Sushil and Gopal Ansal for the period already undergone and imposed a fine under section 120B (conspiracy), one crore under section 409 (criminal breach of trust) and one crore under section 201 (destruction of evidence) of IPC.

The court sentenced the convict PP Batra for the period already undergone during custody. The court fined him for Rs. 10000 for conspiracy, Rs. 10000 for criminal breach of trust and Rs. 10000 for the offence of destruction of evidence.

The court also sentenced Dinesh Chandra Sharma for the period already undergone during custody in jail. The court fined him for Rs 25,000 for the offence of conspiracy, Rs 25,000 for the offence of criminal breach of trust and lastly for Rs 10,000 for the offence of destruction of evidence.

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) Court on November 8 last year had sentenced seven-year imprisonment and imposed Rs 2.25-crore fine each on Sushil and Gopal Ansal for tampering with evidence

The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court while passing the order also said "After thinking over night and night, I have come to the conclusion that they deserve punishment."

At least 59 people died of asphyxia and over 100 others were injured in the stampede after fire broke out in Uphaar cinema on June 13, 1997, during the screening of JP Dutta's film 'Border'.

( With inputs from ANI )