Tagging it a “catastrophe,” the Gujarat High Court, Wednesday, shot down a plea by 46 councillors of Morbi municipality demanding they be heard before any order is passed regarding dissolving or superseding the civic body.
The October 30 tragedy claimed 135 lives.
A notice was also issued to Ajanta Manufacturing Pvt Ltd, to which the Oreva Group had entered into a contractual arrangement “to maintain and operate the British-era suspension bridge.”
The HC also ordered the state government to submit the report of investigation by the Special Investigation Team and the report on the compliance of earlier orders Court by January 19.
Rejecting the argument put forward by Morbi Municipality, the court accepted the petition against the owners of the Oreva Group. The bench comprising Chief Justice Aravind Kumar and Justice Ashutosh Shastri directed Jaysukh Patel to submit a reply at the next hearing.
Nine people have been arrested so far: two Oreva group managers, two ticket-booking clerks, three security guards, and two private contractors hired for the bridge’s repair and renovation.
Jaysukh Patel, managing director of Oreva group, is yet to be called by the police for questioning. He has not appeared in public since the incident.
Also Read: China-Returnee Tests Positive For Covid In Gujarat’s Bhavnagar
