Vikas Nagar slum fire: HC orders probe, seeks answers by May 13

The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court directed the Additional Chief Secretary, Public Works Department (PWD) to conduct an inquiry and submit a report detailing the encroachment of PWD land in connection with the April 15 Vikas Nagar slum fire incident in Lucknow.

The court also directed the state’s relief commissioner to investigate the matter and ordered the responding officials to submit their responses by May 13 detailing the incident, the causes and the proposed remedial measures.

The court stated that the District Magistrate and the Municipal Commissioner of Lucknow will file their separate counter affidavits (replies) in the case.

The court questioned how, if the PWD owned the land, people could encroach on it and held it for years. The court also questioned which officials were responsible for preventing encroachment of state land. The court asked whether the government has any mechanism in place to prevent such incidents from recurring.

A division bench of Justice Rajan Roy and Justice Manjive Shukla issued this order on April 17, which was uploaded on Wednesday, in response to a public interest litigation filed by Anurag Tripathi, a local lawyer. The petition sought proper rehabilitation for the fire victims, including medical treatment, rations and temporary housing. The petitioner said that the residents had lost everything, and therefore they should receive immediate government assistance. The court scheduled the next hearing for May 13.