Delhi HC seeks Uphaar victims body's response on Sushil Ansal's plea in passport fraud case

New Delhi, Sep 10 (PTI) The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought response of the Association of the Victims of Uphaar Tragedy (AVUT) on an application filed by businessman Sushil Ansal in an alleged fraud case related to renewal of his passport.

The plea was filed before justice Arun Monga against a trial court order, allowing the AVUT to assist the prosecution in the case.

The judge, however, refused to stay the trial and issued notice to the association, directing it to file its reply by November 25.

Ansal was convicted in the 1997 Uphaar cinema fire, which killed 59 people.

AVUT chairperson Neelam Krishnamoorthy had filed an application through senior advocate Vikas Pahwa to assist the prosecution in the case, raising objections in the investigation and the charge sheet.

Ansal was booked by Delhi Police's crime branch in 2019 under Section 12 of the Passport Act, which deals with suppression of information about nationality while obtaining a passport.

The FIR was also registered under IPC sections 177 (knowingly furnishing false information to a public servant) and 181 (false statement on oath) 192 (fabricating false evidence), 197 (issuing or signing false certificate), and 420 (cheating).

In an order on August 4, chief judicial magistrate Shriya Agarwal said, "The Association at the instance of which the law was set into motion in the present case ought to get a right of assisting the prosecution, to which there is no bar in law." AVUT, the judge said, was at liberty to assist the prosecution in the present case and no prejudice would be caused to the accused.

Pahwa said the present case was registered through a Delhi High Court order in a writ petition filed by AVUT, and so effective right of participation could be given to the association.

Earlier, in its eight-page final report, police claimed Ansal misled the government on oath that he had not been convicted in any criminal proceedings by any court.

Krishnamoorthy, who lost two children in the tragedy, has been fighting a legal battle on behalf of the victims' families for over two decades.

Rules stipulate that for a new or a re-issue or a replacement of lost or damaged passport, the applicant must disclose whether the person is involved in any criminal case and produce a no-objection certificate from a court in case the person is.

On June 13, 1997, a fire broke out at the Uphaar cinema in south Delhi during the screening of Hindi film Border, killing 59 people. PTI UK VN VN