BENGALURU: Wing Commander GB Athri (retired) and Geetha Misra, a resident of Rajajinagar, moved the Karnataka High Court seeking directions to the State and Centre to order to conduct inquiry into a fire accident that occurred at the parking place of Yelahanka Air Force Station on February 23, 2019, during the International Air Show.
Hearing the PIL petition filed by the duo, the vacation division bench of Justice H T Narendra Prasad and Justice Ashok S Kinagi issued notice to the Ministry of Defence and the City Police Commissioner. As an interim prayer, the petitioners have requested the court to issue directions to the State and Centre to submit the detailed report of what action has been taken so far in relation to the accident in which hundreds of cars were burnt.
The petitioners have contended that the State and Centre have failed to comply with laws and regulations by not taking precautionary measures as prescribed in the National Disaster Management Authority. “They should not have allowed parking of vehicles during an international event and it is their duty to hold random inspections and mock drill before such events are conducted,” they claimed.
They also pleaded that the authorities should not compromise on safety to save money while organising such a grand event and said that it was a total failure on the part of the organisers.