‘15 RTI pleas, protests & a long legal battle'
Mumbai: Advocate Godfrey Pimenta, upon learning of Kurla's Hotel City Kinara fire that killed eight in Oct 2015, said they promptly decided to hold a dharna outside the Vinoba Bhave Nagar police station, demanding the immediate arrest of those responsible.
Despite being threatened with arrest for holding the protest, they proceeded with it, joined by grieving parents.
"Subsequently, we submitted 15 to 20 applications under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, seeking extensive documentation from the licence department and the buildings and factories department of the BMC, Mumbai fire brigade, HPCL, and other relevant agencies. Equipped with substantial information obtained through the RTI Act, we filed a formal complaint with Maharashtra Lokayukta, seeking compensation for the bereaved families.
We also organised protests at Kurla, and held a dharna at Azad Maidan, demanding a CBI inquiry," said Pimenta. In a gesture reminiscent of Munnabhai MBBS, he said they left flower bouquets along with 'Get Well Soon' placards outside the home of the then municipal commissioner Ajoy Mehta.
In Feb 2017, the Lokayukta granted a compensation of Rs 1 lakh. Pimenta said they then approached Bombay High Court. "We are deeply gratified by the recent judgment and would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to senior counsel Naushad Engineer and his team, as well as advocate Jayesh Mestry, who appeared pro bono in support of this just cause."tnn
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