Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, July 18: Delhi court on Monday dismissed the Ansal brothers’ appeals against their conviction in the case of tampering with evidence related to the tragic Uphaar cinema fire. All of the accused, including Sushil and Gopal Ansal, had their appeals rejected by District and Sessions Judge Dharmesh Sharma, with the exception of Anoop Singh.
Singh was exonerated even though the verdict of the conviction made by the Magisterial Court was affirmed. The debates over the quantum of punishment will be held on Tuesday.
Notably, Ansal was sentenced to seven years in prison and a fine of 2.25 crore by a magistrate court in November 2021 for tampering with evidence in the fire tragedy case.
Other prisoners PP Batra, Dinesh Chandra Sharma, and Singh received the same prison sentence but were also each given a fine of 3 lakh.
They subsequently went to the Sessions Court to appeal the Magistrate’s decision.
The victim’s association was represented by senior advocate Vikas Pahwa, who demanded the worst punishment possible for the defendants while highlighting Ansals’ “second conviction.” He suggested that the inmates plotted to perpetrate the crime in the current case and abused the freedom they were given in the major Uphaar case.
The case was brought about by a tragic fire that broke out in Uphaar Cinema on June 13, 1997, killing 59 persons and injuring many more. After conducting its investigation, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed a chargesheet against Sushil Ansal, Gopal Ansal, and other suspects.
But in 2003, a judge requested an investigation when some records pertaining to the Uphaar tragedy case vanished from the court record room. The court employee was fired after the investigation was finished.
