After police arrested nine people pertaining to the bridge collapse in Morbi, a local court on Wednesday sent four of the accused to police custody, while the other five will remain in judicial custody till 5 November. The Morbi Police affirmed that they are probing different angles of lapses by the accused and will make more arrest, if new names come into picture.
Out of four people who will remain in the police custody, two are managers of the Oreva company, which opened the bridge for visitors after seven months of maintenance.
“We are questioning all the 4 accused in our custody and we are trying to establish the liability of the different kinds of lapses in the bridge renovation. We are doing a thorough investigation and if anyone’s role comes forward, he or she will be booked and arrested,” Rahul Tripathi, SP Morbi told news agency ANI.
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The Gujarat Police has filed an FIR under IPC sections 304 and 308 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) against the accused. The government has also formed a five-member committee to probe the incident.
Meanwhile, the Morbi Bar Association also announced on Wednesday that its members will not represent the accused in the Morbi bridge collapse. They organized a protest march after passing the resolution of not defending the accused. “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,” senior advocate A C Prajapati said.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi ordered an extensive investigation into the Morbi bridge collapse, which killed 135 people and more than100 people are admitted to hospital. A number of rescue and relief teams are searching the waters of the river, to find any survivors and bodies of the victims. On Wednesday, the scuba divers were also roped in to ensure that no body is left behind.
The Prime Minister visited the site of the accident on Tuesday and reviewed the situation. He also instructed officials to be in touch with the affected families and ensure that they receive all possible help in this tragic moment.
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Gujarat has announced a state-wide mourning on Wednesday, for the victims of the tragedy and the national flag is waving at half-mast in government buildings. All the public functions, receptions, and entertainment programs were cancelled.
The accident comes ahead of elections to Gujarat assembly and therefore has also raised the political heat in the state with opposition parties alleging corruption and demanding resignation of the Chief Minister.
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