19 Years On, Uphaar Victims' Families Wait For Closure

New Delhi: Nineteen years have passed since a summer day in 1997 when 59 people died, most of them choking to death, and 103 were injured, in a fire at the Uphaar theatre in Delhi but for families of the victims, closure is still elusive.

"I would have been a grandmother by now," said Neelam Krishnamoorthy, who who lost her two children aged 15 and 17 in the fire and heads the Association of Victims of Uphaar Tragedy or AVUT which is leading the legal against the builders of the cinema - Sushil and Gopal Ansal.

Last year on August 19, the Supreme Court had imposed a fine of Rs 30 crore each on the Ansal brothers and held that their jail terms be reduced to the term already undergone by them if they pay the fine, considering their old age.

Sushil Ansal had spent five months and 20 days in jail while Gopal Ansal spent four months and 20 days in 2008.
 But the victims' group says the penalty was too little too late for the builders who had broken basic safety laws - exit doors, for example, were blocked to accommodate more seats than allowed - and have filed a petition to have the verdict reviewed.

"We will contribute and build the centre," said Ms Krishnamoorthy, about the Rs 60 crore-fine that is to be used to build a trauma centre. "Please help us recover from our trauma first," she said.

And while the Supreme Court allowed an open hearing of the review petition on the January 6 this year, it has still not been taken up. AVUT says it has since then also mentioned the matter in the court of the Chief Justice of India twice.

The Uphaar victims say it's a shame that 19 years on, their fight for legal closure continues. They hope that when they mark the 20th anniversary of the tragedy next year, they can think more on emotional closure than the legal battle ahead.