Kamala Mills fire: Lookout notice issued against 3 pub owners

Mumbai: The Mumbai police has issued a lookout notice against the three co-owners of the pub 1 Above at Lower Parel’s Kamala Mills compound, which was among the two pubs gutted in an early Friday fire that killed 14 persons. The trio — Ritesh Sanghvi, Jigar Sanghvi and Abhijeet Mankar — have been absconding since the tragedy. All exit-entry points across the country have been alerted to detain the trio upon being sighted.

The NM Joshi police had on Friday detained two close relatives of the Sanghvis for questioning. An FIR has been registered against the Sanghvi brothers and Mankar under sections related to culpable homicide not amounting to murder and other sections. No arrest has been made yet.

Police sources said that on Friday they had detained two close relatives of the Sanghvi brothers with the hope that since the relatives were in the clutches of the police, the Sanghvi brothers might surrender themselves. The detention comes after neither the Sanghvi brothers nor Abhijeet Mankar were found to be at their residences in South Mumbai. The police have also issued lookout notices against the three accused, for compromising on the safety norms set by the fire department of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

S. Jayakumar, additional commissioner of police (central region) told this paper, “One very obvious violation was that the emergency exit on the floor was shut. There can be no violation bigger than this.”

“Acting on the BMC’s report which will be submitted to us, we will make the needed changes in the sections charged on the accused,” he added.

Mr Jayakumar said that if the BMC report reveals that the accused are not found in fault pertaining to the section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) which attracts imprisonment that may extend to ten years, or fine, or both, the sections will be downgraded to 304(a) pertaining to causing death due to negligence, which attracts imprisonment that may extend to two years, or fine, or both.

On Friday, the police had booked the Sanghvi brothers and Abhijeet Mankar under IPC sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others), 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) and 34 (common intention).