The remains after the fire at Dreams Mall, in Mumbai's Bhandup West. A sessions court recently granted bail to the CEO of Sunrise Hospital and a safety inspector in the case of a fire in which 11 patients had died in March. The hospital is located inside Dreams Mall in Bhandup.
“…In the present matter….fire took place on the first floor, therefore, it shows that the applicant had no intention to cause fire on the first floor, causing the death of 11 persons admitted in the hospital,” the court said and granted bail to George Puthussery (CEO) and Haresh Joshi.
While the mall situated in Bhandup was shut as it had not received an occupation certificate, after the Covid-19 pandemic, BMC gave permission to start Sunrise Hospital on the third floor in the mall and the provisional occupation certificate was issued on May 6, 2020. The hospital had then begun treating Covid-19 patients.
On March 25 this year, a fire that began on the first floor spread to the third causing 11 deaths.
The police claimed the CEO had procured a certificate that there is equipment for fire fighting at the hospital and that the certificate was issued by Joshi. The police alleged that the certificate was false and based on it a NOC was given by the fire brigade for the hospital to operate
Lawyers for the two submitted that the fire had taken place on the first floor and the deaths were caused due to smoke that spread to the third floor. It was also submitted that the hospital had required fire equipment.
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