HYDERABAD: Expressing serious concern over the inordinate delay in the completion of the investigation into the death of 54 workers in the Sigachi factory explosion on June 30, the Telangana High Court has directed the investigating officer to personally appear before the court on December 9, along with all relevant records such as the case diary, FIR, FSL report and the status of the investigation.
The explosion at the factory, located at Pashamylaram in Sultanpur village, Patancheru mandal, left 28 others seriously injured.
A division bench of Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice G M Mohiuddin was hearing a PIL filed by Kalapala Babu Rao of Nacharam, seeking a direction to the state government to pay full and final compensation of Rs 1 crore to each family of the deceased workers.
Taking a serious note of the delay in the investigation even several months after the incident, Justice Aparesh Kumar questioned T Rajnikanth Reddy, the additional advocate general, why a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has not been constituted in such a serious case.
Underlining the gravity of the tragedy, he remarked, “This is not an ordinary murder or a rape case. It is a much more serious incident and the investigation should have been concluded by now.”
Advocate Vasudha Nagraj, appearing for the petitioners, informed the court that 54 workers, most of them migrants from other states, died in the blast while eight workers were still missing, but police has not made any meaningful progress in the case. Though the police registered an FIR, the missing persons’ angle is being ignored, she said.
She further submitted that the families of the deceased and injured workers are still awaiting full compensation from the state government.
The petitioners’ counsel also pointed out that the families of deceased workers received only Rs 26 lakh -Rs 30 lakh while those of the missing victims were paid Rs 25 lakh, though the total announced compensation is Rs 1 crore each.
The bench noted that while relatives and nearby villagers were examined as witnesses, officers of regulatory agencies and employees of the factory were yet to be examined.