Ansals get chargesheet copies on Uphaar case files tampering

A Delhi court today provided copies of the chargesheet and other documents to Uphaar theatre owners Sushil and Gopal Ansal facing prosecution for allegedly tampering with judicial file of the case.

A Delhi court on Monday provided copies of the chargesheet and other documents to Uphaar theatre owners Sushil and Gopal Ansal facing prosecution for allegedly tampering with judicial file of the case relating to the 1997 fire that killed 59 cinegoers.

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"Copies (of chargesheet) supplied (to the accused). Put up for scrutiny of documents and further proceedings on August 11," Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Ajay Pandey said.

Ansals, who were convicted and sentenced to one-year jail term in the main Uphaar fire case, are accused of colluding with others, including a court's record keeper, in destroying crucial judicial documents.

The documents allegedly proved that the Ansals, contrary to their claims, were the owners of the theatre at the time of the incident.

The Association of Victims of Uphaar Tragedy (AVUT), meanwhile, on Monday said conditions such as that they would neither tamper with the evidence nor threaten the witnesses, were not imposed on the accused while granting them the bail.

"The accused are facing prosecution for tampering with the records. They are also facing charges of threatening me. Even then, the court did not impose any such condition on them," Neelam Krishnamurthy of AVUT said.

"For that, the prosecution will have to file a separate application," the court said.