Morbi tragedy: Gujarat govt opposes regular bail plea of Oreva Group MD

The Gujarat government on Wednesday opposed the regular bail plea of Jaysukh Patel, managing director of Oreva Group, in the case pertaining to last year’s Morbi suspension bridge collapse that killed 135 persons, asserting that he is the main accused.

Oreva Group was responsible for the operation and maintenance of the British-era suspension bridge which snapped on October 30, 2022. The accident also left 56 grievously injured.

Patel had moved a plea for regular bail before the court of principal district and sessions judge PC Joshi, nearly three weeks after the same court had rejected his interim bail plea. After the conclusion of the hearing from the two sides, the court reserved its verdict for Friday, Public Prosecutor SK Vora said. During the hearing Wednesday, Vora opposed Patel’s bail plea on the ground of parity with nine other accused whose similar petitions were turned down by the court.

“The roles of the accused who worked as security guards and sold tickets to the visitors of the bridge can be said to be of lesser degree compared to that of Patel, who is the main accused. The bail pleas of nine accused were rejected by this court and the high court. Therefore, the court should not grant him bail,” argued Vora.

The matter came up for hearing even as Oreve Group told the Gujarat High Court on March 27 that it has deposited half of the amount for compensation to the victims of the bridge collapse, in compliance with its February 22 order.