Morbi tragedy: Guj HC judge recuses from hearing Oreva Group manager’s bail plea

Oreva Group was responsible for the operation and maintenance of the British-era suspension bridge which collapsed on October 30, 2022, killing 135 and leaving 56 others grievously injured

A Gujarat high court judge has recused himself from presiding over the bail application of Dineshkumar Dave, a manager at Oreva Group and an accused in the Morbi suspension bridge collapse case.

Previously, Justice Samir Dave had heard similar applications from five others involved in the case. (PTI file image)

Previously, Justice Samir Dave had heard similar applications from five other individuals involved in the case and granted them regular bail.

Among those who obtained bail were three security guards and two booking clerks, all represented by the same legal team.

Notably, the state government did not raise substantial objections to their bail pleas, considering their specific roles in the incident, as outlined in the charge sheet.

“Is this the Morbi one? Not before me,” Shah stated as soon as the matter came up for hearing before him on Thursday.

Jaysukh Patel, the managing director of the company, had also filed a bail application in the high court after being denied bail by a sessions court on April 1.

Rejecting the bail plea, the court of principal district and sessions judge P C Joshi noted that Patel, the main accused in the case, played an active role in the events that led to the tragedy, and he should continue to remain in jail.

Oreva Group was responsible for the operation and maintenance of the British-era suspension bridge which collapsed on October 30, 2022, killing 135 and leaving 56 others grievously injured.

The case involves a total of ten accused who have been booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including culpable homicide not amounting to murder (Section 304), attempt to commit culpable homicide (Section 308), acts endangering human life (Section 336), causing hurt by rash or negligent acts (Section 337), and causing grievous hurt by rash or negligent acts (Section 338).