Kamala Mills fire: High Court seeks panel report by September10

Mumbai: The Bombay high court (HC) on Thursday asked the judicial committee probing the Kamala Mills compound fire, which claimed 14 lives, to submit its report on September 10. In April, the HC had ordered that a three-member committee be set up to conduct an inquiry into the incident that took place last year.

A division bench of Justices Bhushan Gavai and Makrand Karnik was hearing a PIL filed by retired commissioner of police Julio Ribeiro, who sought that a judicial committee be set up under the Commissions of Inquiry Act to probe the fire and expose illegalities of restaurant owners, state officers and BMC officers. The plea also suggested that a policy be framed to avoid such incidents in the future. The panel was later set up and is headed by retired chief justice A. V. Savant along  with two members, former chief secretary K. Nalinakshan and Vasant Thakur. The panel was directed earlier to submit its report to the HC on August 31.

The BMC had moved a plea seeking extension of time granted to the committee to submit its report.