New Delhi, April 21 () The Delhi High Court on Friday listed, for July 18, the Association of Victims of Uphaar Tragedy (AVUT)’s revision petition challenging a trial court’s order of reducing real estate magnates Sushil and Gopal Ansal’s sentence for allegedly tampering with evidence in the 1997 tragedy from seven years to eight months.
The plea seeks enhancement of punishment and the AVUT wanted the matter to be heard in priority.
The matter was sent to the regular board of the High Court last year.
Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani said the case has wider public law ramifications while directing that the other related matters like pleas by the Ansal brothers against their conviction be also listed on the same date.
“The matter involves wider public law ramifications including those affecting the judicial system itself which require prioritisation. The application is allowed.
“Renotify in July to verify whether the matter is ripe for hearing..It is made clear that the next date of hearing is not for final hearing. Such a date will be decided subsequently,” the judge added.
The High Court had, on January 25, issued a notice to Ansals and other convicts in this case.
On November 8, 2021, a Delhi court awarded seven-year jail terms to the Ansal brothers in the tampering with evidence case and imposed a fine of Rs 2,25,00,000 on each.
The rest were fined Rs 3 lakh each.
On July 18, 2022, the Principal District and Sessions Judge of the Patiala House Courts upheld the order of conviction under Sections 409, 201 and 120B of the IPC passed by the trial court against the Ansals, Dinesh Chandra Sharma (Ahlmad, who was charged with tampering of a document) and P.P. Batra, except Anoop Singh as he was acquitted of all charges.
The following day, the court passed the order on sentence and reduced the sentence of seven years to the period already undergone i.e eight months and 12 days.
“We empathise with you (AVUT). Many lives were lost, which can never be compensated. But you must understand that penal policy is not about retribution. We have to consider their (Ansals) age. You have suffered, but they have also suffered,” the judge had said.
The AVUT’s plea said that the district judge has failed to consider that the offence of tampering is extremely serious in nature as it affects the entire criminal justice system.
The plea stated that the sessions court failed to consider that this is a case which shatters the confidence of the public at large in the criminal justice system and it requires a maximum sentence so that it works as a deterrent for others who even dream of tampering with the court record in future.
“The Ansal brothers misused the liberty granted to them in the main case and tampered with the evidence after hatching criminal conspiracy with the court staff,” stated the plea.
For the 59 victims’ families, Neelam and Shekhar Krishnamoorthy, who lost their two teenaged children formed AVUT on June 30, 1997, barely 17 days after the tragedy struck.
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