From Old Rusty Cables In FSL Report To 'Act Of God' Claim In Court — Morbi Bridge Collapse Key Updates
To pay homage to the victims of the Morbi bridge tragedy, Gujarat is observing state-wide mourning today. Flags were flown at half-mast and no official or entertainment event will be held today.
New Delhi: The forensic science laboratory (FSL) report on the Morbi bridge collapse has stated that the cable of the bridge was old and rusting away, said Morbi additional public prosecutor, HS Panchal, reported news agency ANI. The Investigating Officer (IO) also said that only the flooring of the bridge was changed and not the cables, he added.
“In the report, the Investigating Officer stated that the tender process did not take place and the contract was directly allotted,” he added, quoted by the news agency.
“Out of the 4 people who were sent to Police custody, 2 are managers at Oreva Co and 2 others did fabrication work for the bridge. The 5 others who were sent to judicial custody are security personnel and ticket vendors,” Panchal informed.
The prosecutor also revealed that one of the accused managers of the Oreva company cited " Act of God" in the court as a reason for the tragic mishap. "One of the two managers of Oreva company (that have been arrested) told the court that it is an 'Act of God'," said Additional Public Prosecutor.
Chief Judicial Magistrate M J Khan remanded four of the arrested accused — two managers of the Oreva Group and two sub-contractors who had repaired the bridge — in police custody till Saturday.
The court remanded five other arrested men, including security guards and ticket booking clerks, in judicial custody as police did not seek their custody, prosecutor Panchal said.
A suspension foot-bridge in Gujarat’s Morbi city snapped on Sunday evening claiming the lives of 135 people.
Morbi Lawyers Refuse To Represent Accused
The Morbi Bar Association and Rajkot Bar Association on Wednesday said that they will not take up and represent the case of nine accused in the collapse of the ill-fated suspension bridge.
"Nine accused (of Oreva co.) in the Morbi Bridge Collapse have been arrested. Morbi Bar Association and Rajkot Bar Association have decided to not take their case and represent them. Both the Bar Associations have passed this Resolution,” AC Prajapati, senior advocate for Morbi Bar Association told news agency ANI.
“All the lawyers of the association are deeply saddened by the tragedy. This is a moral call. We won't represent any accused in the bridge collapse case after the death of so many innocent people,” another lawyer said, quoted by news agency PTI.
Gujarat Observes Statewide Mourning
To pay homage to the victims of the Morbi bridge tragedy, Gujarat is observing state-wide mourning today.
Flags were flown at half-mast, an official said, adding that no official or entertainment event will be held on Wednesday.
This decision to observe the state-wide mourning was taken on Monday in a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to review the situation after the tragedy in which 135 people were killed on Sunday evening when the British-era suspension bridge on the Machchhu river collapsed.
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel had in a tweet said no official function will be held on Wednesday.
170 People Rescued, Says Gujarat Minister
The search and rescue operation over the Machchu river by armed forces and teams of National Disaster Response Force was underway. 170 people have been rescued so far, Gujarat minister Rajendra Trivedi said on Tuesday, reported news agency PTI.
The rescue operation is still ongoing in the Machchhu river by the armed forces, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and other agencies, officials said.
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