Gurugram court fire: Cops probe sabotage angle after records gutted, lodge FIR

Police booked unidentified persons under BNS provisions related to mischief by fire after severe record damage.

An FIR was registered on Monday suspecting mischief or sabotage behind the fire that broke out at the Gurugram civil court complex a day earlier, resulting in partial collapse of the old court building and severe damage to a majority of court records, officials said.

Authorities said most records in the old lower court record room were severely damaged in the blaze. (Parveen Kumar/HT)

Police said the FIR was registered at Shivaji Nagar police station on the complaint of chief judicial magistrate Rajat Verma under Section 326(g) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, pertaining to mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to destroy a house or property. A special investigation team to probe the fire’s cause may be formed soon, officials said.

No judicial work took place on Monday due to the fire, officials said.

Justice Ashwini Kumar Mishra, inspecting judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, visited the court complex late Sunday evening and found the fire was still burning even six hours after it broke out.

“Judgements in some cases may take time due to damaged records. They will be reconstructed in a phased manner,” Mishra said.

He also held a meeting with district and sessions judge Narender Sura, police commissioner Shibas Kaviraj, deputy commissioner Uttam Singh and other officials to review the damage and arrange temporary functioning of courts from the PWD guest house.

Sura said entry into the damaged building remained unsafe on Monday due to high temperatures inside the structure.

“A detailed inspection and actual assessment of the damage will be carried out only after reports are received from the NDRF, SDRF and technical agencies,” he said.

“Most of the records in the old record room of the lower courts were severely affected by the fire. However, assessment of the actual status of pending cases in some courts was pending due to prohibited entry,” he added.

Sura said 21 courtrooms along with support staff would temporarily function from the PWD guest house.

“Directions have also been issued by chief minister Nayab Singh Saini to administrative officers to ensure that all necessary facilities are provided to judicial officers for smooth court functioning,” he said.

Gurugram Bar Association president Chandrakant Sharma said advocates would cooperate in reconstructing damaged records. “Judicial work is continuing smoothly through alternative arrangements, and hearings in urgent matters are being conducted without interruption,” he said.