Ghatkopar building collapse: Bombay HC rejects bail applications of accused

The Bombay High Court on Thursday rejected bail applications of accused Sunil Shitap and interior designer Ranjeet Agale in the 2017 Ghatkopar building collapse incident.

In the operative part of the order, Justice AS Gadkari observed that “serious complicity has been brought on record, thus, they don't deserve to be released on bail”.

Sunil Shitap was a local Shiv Sena leader of that area and was running a nursing home at the ground floor of the building. There was a renovation work going on in the nursing home at the time of collapse. Shitap and interior designer Angale were arrested days after the collapse under the charges of culpable homicide.

Earlier, the bail plea of the duo was rejected by a Sessions Court in October 2017 following which they had approached the Bombay High Court.

Eight family members of the victims of this tragedy and two flat owners had opposed the bail applications of Shitap and Angale. They were represented by lawyers Ashish Mehta and Sujay Kantawala, while accused Sunil Shitap and Ranjeet Angale were represented by Amit Desai and Ashok Mundergi in the High Court.

The four-storey building in Ghatkopar collapsed around 10.45 a.m. on July 25 last year in which 17 people were crushed, including two toddlers.

(ANI)