Uphaar case: Ansals undermined rule of law, Delhi police tell court

The Ansals have sought to suspend the sentence and the fine imposed on them last week after the magistrate found them guilty of tampering with evidence in the Uphaar tragedy case

The Delhi Police on Tuesday told a local court that real estate barons Sushil and Gopal Ansal have committed a crime which is “gravest of its kind” that has shattered the faith of the common man in the justice delivery system.

The Ansal brothers were sentenced to two years by the Supreme Court in August 2015 in the main fire case that stunned the Capital 24 years ago and led to major changes in fire safety norms. (Burhaan Kinu/HT Archive)

The Ansals have sought to suspend the sentence and the fine imposed on them last week after the magistrate found them guilty of tampering with evidence in the Uphaar tragedy case. The trial court sentenced the Ansal brothers to seven years imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹2.25 crore each on them.

Opposing the plea, additional public prosecutor AT Ansari argued that the convicts, including the Ansals, have not only potentially eroded the institutional integrity of the “Delhi judiciary”, but also seriously impugned the administration of the criminal justice system.

“The offences proved against the convicts are gravest of its kind and have ultimately shattered the faith of the common man in the justice delivery system. By tampering with crucial evidence forming part of judicial records, convicts sought to hamper and scuttle the process of law. They have not only polluted the stream of justice but they have also potentially undermined the majesty of ‘rule of law’,” the public prosecutor told additional sessions judge Anil Antil.

“It would not be an exaggeration to submit that it is a targeted assault by the convicts on the institutional integrity of Delhi judiciary. The possibility of reform cannot be expected from the convicts namely Sushil Ansal and Gopal Ansal. They are previous convicts,” he added.

Ansari argued that this case has led to a formation of a perception that rich, mighty and influential people can do any thing and get away with it and that they even can manipulate the judicial system in their favour and the court needs to break this perception.

The matter will be heard next on November 18.

The Ansal brothers were sentenced to two years by the Supreme Court in August 2015 in the main fire case that stunned the Capital 24 years ago and led to major changes in fire safety norms. But they avoided further imprisonment after spending about five months in prison when the apex court, in August 2015, ruled that a penalty of ₹30 crore each and time already served was adequate punishment for their criminal negligence given their age.

Sentencing the Ansals on November 8, chief metropolitan magistrate Dr Pankaj Sharma said, “It is important to note that in a sentencing process, it is not only the crime that is important but the criminal and his/her circumstances are also equally important. The circumstances during which the instant crime was committed show the deep disrespect which the convicts had for the law and the judicial process and for the victims.”