The Delhi High Court on Thursday, 12 January, rejected a plea moved by real estate baron Sushil Ansal seeking a stay on the release of upcoming Netflix web series Trial By Fire, which is based on the Uphaar Cinema tragedy. The series is scheduled to be released on the OTT platform on Friday, 13 January.
The Ansal brothers – Sushil and Gopal are the main accused in the case. In his suit, Sushil had sought a permanent and mandatory injunction against the series, which is an adaptation of the book by the same name. He had also sought a restraint on further publication of the book, reported LiveLaw.
Who has written the book?: The book, titled Trial By Fire – The Tragic Tale of the Uphaar Tragedy, is written by Neelam and Shekhar Krishnamoorthy, parents of two minor children who had lost their lives in the tragedy.
The web-series is an adaptation of this book.
Neelam is also the chairperson of the Association of Victims of the Uphaar Tragedy (AVUT), which has led the nearly 25-year-old court battle to seek justice for the victims of the tragedy.
What has Sushil Ansal claimed in his suit?: Sushil Ansal, who has been convicted twice in cases related to the fire claimed that the recently-released trailer of the web series “has caused and has the propensity to cause further immense and irreparable harm to his reputation and right to life under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution,” LiveLaw reported.
He further claimed that when he bought a copy of the book, he “was shocked to find” that the book contained "a one-sided narration of the unfortunate incident.”
How had the Krishnamoorthy’s responded?: "While I am not surprised that the Ansals have approached the HC over the web series, I am a bit surprised about the book bit because it's been in circulation for seven years now," Neelam told The Quint on 10 January.
What had happened?: In 1997, half-way during the screening of the film Sunny Deol-starrer Border, a fire had broken out in Uphaar Cinema, located in south Delhi. Fifty nine people, including 23 children, had lost their lives in the tragedy, while at least 100 were seriously injured. The youngest casualty in the fire was a month-old baby called Chetna.
Children of the Krishnamoorthys children, Ujjwal and Unnati, were two of those who died in the tragedy.
Were the Ansal brothers convicted?: Sushil and Gopal Ansal were convicted in 2015, but the Supreme Court had allowed them to walk free after paying a fine of Rs 30 crore each. In 2017, the top court had asked Gopal to undergo his remaining one-year jail term, while Sushil was given relief due to old age and considering the jail term already served by him.
In 2021, the Ansal brothers were convicted again for tampering of evidence by a Delhi court. They were fined Rs 2.25 crore each and a jail-term of seven years. They had challenged this order. However, in July 2022, the punishment was upheld by the sessions court.
Who features in the web series?: The Netflix series Trial By Fire, slated for release on 13 January, stars actors Abhay Deol, Rajshri Deshpande and Rajesh Tailang, among others.
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