New Delhi:
It was Friday the 13th when a fire broke out at the basement car park of a 5-storey building in the Capital that housed the Uphaar theatre.
There was panic all around as the lights went out and the emergency lights didn't work. Some exit points were blocked that resulted in a stampede. Fifty-nine people lost their lives, many of whom died of suffocation after being trapped in the balcony.
It has been 14 years since the Uphaar cinema tragedy changed the lives of 28 families forever. In every house there was a story of loss - of a father, a husband, a daughter, a wife and a son.
These families now come together each year to pay tributes and reaffirm their efforts to fight for justice.
Among those who died were two children, Ujjwal and Unnati, both in their teens. For Neelam Krishnamurthy, the pain of losing both her children must have been unbearable but that hasn't deterred her from leading the fight for justice.
"I promised my children that day I will not stop fighting until I get justice for them," says Neelam Krishnamurthy, President, Association of Victims of Uphaar Tragedy.
United in grief are the Sawhneys who lost their young daughter Tarika in the tragedy. The 21-year-old was about to complete her degree in Sociology. That day, she left home in a hurry, saying she would return and have her favourite dish - 'kadi chawal'.
"She went that day after eating breakfast...she didn't even eat much and I had cooked for her. I have never cooked that food again," says her mother.
"No one in our family has ever gone to the cinema ever since that day but we have to keep fighting for her sake," adds her father Naveen Sawhney.
Stories like these are many but the underlying fact remains that it has been a long and tough fight for justice for all of them.
For over 2 years now, the case is in the Supreme Court and the main accused in the case - the Ansal brothers - are out on bail. The trial court is yet to decide if they tried to tamper with evidence.
The Home Ministry has not yet given sanction to prosecute senior IPS officer Amodh Kant who is accused of allowing additional seats in the theatre's balcony in violation of rules.
With the memories of the loss of their loved ones still afresh, the fight for justice for these families continues but the belief that they will get it is slowly fading with every year.
There was panic all around as the lights went out and the emergency lights didn't work. Some exit points were blocked that resulted in a stampede. Fifty-nine people lost their lives, many of whom died of suffocation after being trapped in the balcony.
It has been 14 years since the Uphaar cinema tragedy changed the lives of 28 families forever. In every house there was a story of loss - of a father, a husband, a daughter, a wife and a son.
These families now come together each year to pay tributes and reaffirm their efforts to fight for justice.
Among those who died were two children, Ujjwal and Unnati, both in their teens. For Neelam Krishnamurthy, the pain of losing both her children must have been unbearable but that hasn't deterred her from leading the fight for justice.
"I promised my children that day I will not stop fighting until I get justice for them," says Neelam Krishnamurthy, President, Association of Victims of Uphaar Tragedy.
United in grief are the Sawhneys who lost their young daughter Tarika in the tragedy. The 21-year-old was about to complete her degree in Sociology. That day, she left home in a hurry, saying she would return and have her favourite dish - 'kadi chawal'.
"She went that day after eating breakfast...she didn't even eat much and I had cooked for her. I have never cooked that food again," says her mother.
"No one in our family has ever gone to the cinema ever since that day but we have to keep fighting for her sake," adds her father Naveen Sawhney.
Stories like these are many but the underlying fact remains that it has been a long and tough fight for justice for all of them.
For over 2 years now, the case is in the Supreme Court and the main accused in the case - the Ansal brothers - are out on bail. The trial court is yet to decide if they tried to tamper with evidence.
The Home Ministry has not yet given sanction to prosecute senior IPS officer Amodh Kant who is accused of allowing additional seats in the theatre's balcony in violation of rules.
With the memories of the loss of their loved ones still afresh, the fight for justice for these families continues but the belief that they will get it is slowly fading with every year.
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