Calcutta HC Orders Suspension of Officials in Garden Reach Building Collapse Incident

The Calcutta High Court on Monday directed Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) to suspend erring officials in an illegal building collapse in the city’s Garden Reach area that claimed 12 lives.

Stressing the importance of investigating the “complicity of the members of KMC in the crime,” the court instructed the police to consider this aspect in their probe.

The court indicated it would consider a plea for a CBI investigation if the local police fail to conduct a genuine probe and fail to expose the negligent public servants.

A division bench of Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya directed the KMC to take appropriate actions, including suspension and disciplinary proceedings against the erring officers as per the law.

Twelve people lost their lives and several others were injured in the collapse of the illegal five-storeyed building in Kolkata’s Garden Reach area on March 18.

During the hearing, Advocate General Kishore Dutta, representing the West Bengal government, submitted a report on the progress of the case investigation.

Another report was filed by the KMC regarding the rehabilitation of the affected individuals. The state’s report mentioned the arrest of the promoter of the unauthorized building.

The AG informed that some owners of the collapsed building have been arrested, while efforts are ongoing to locate other accused individuals who are at large.

The division bench remarked that widespread unauthorized construction couldn’t have occurred without the involvement of KMC officers.

“It seems they neglected their statutory obligations and turned a blind eye to unauthorized construction,” the court observed. The bench instructed the state to provide a further report on the investigation’s progress. The KMC, in its report, stated that show-cause notices have been issued to officers responsible for overseeing illegal construction in the area and was instructed to submit a report on the next hearing date in two weeks. Emphasizing the importance of determining who facilitated these illegal activities, the court stated, “The investigation should now delve into these areas.”

Justice Bagchi, visibly displeased, questioned whether the municipal corporation rewarded the erring officers for their silence during these illegal constructions.

The bench stressed that heads must roll when people have died due to an illegal building collapse.

In response to the AG’s submission regarding the shifting of affected persons to a KMC community hall, the court sarcastically questioned the lawfulness of the hall’s construction.