Six directors of AMRI hospital remanded to police custody

A day after a fire in a hospital in the city claimed 90 lives, six directors of the hospital who had been arrested by the city police, were produced in court on Saturday.


The six directors were remanded to police custody until December 20. Another director, R. S. Agarwal, who has been arrested, but was taken ill and is in hospital, will be produced later.

Representing the State, Kalyan Banerjee said that “there was reckless violation by hospital authorities” at the hospital.

The Alipore Lawyers Bar Association has appealed to its members not to represent any of the accused persons amid growing public resentment on the manner in which safety norms were flouted with impunity and the mishandling of the rescue operations after the fire had broken out.

Relatives of patients have alleged that the hospital staff refused to hear their pleas of evacuating those within and several youths from the nearby areas, who had rushed to the area to offer help were initially turned away.

A team of Forensic experts visited the AMRI hospital during the day and examined the basement of the seven-storied building, the area from where the fire most likely broke out. The probe team set up by the State government to investigate the incident also visited the area.

Nearly all the 90 victims of the tragedy, choked to death after inhaling the noxious fumes that rose up from the basement to the upper floors.

PTI adds:

Mamata orders judicial probe

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday night ordered a judicial inquiry into the AMRI hospital fire.

“The State government has decided to order a judicial inquiry into the hospital fire,” she told reporters at Writers’ Buildings.

Asked who would head the inquiry, she said, “the State Assembly session begins on Monday. I will not speak much now.

“Since people have faith on the judicial system and a tragedy of huge dimension has occurred, we have taken this decision. We have nothing to hide.”

Ms. Banerjee said that police investigation would continue simultaneously.

She earlier held a meeting with Chief Secretary Samar Ghosh and Commissioner of Kolkata Police R.K. Pachnanda.

Keywords: Kolkata hospital fire, AMRI hospital, Disaster Management, rescue operation, hospital negligence, Mamata Banerjee government