Netflix's 'Trial by Fire': Everything about the Uphaar cinema fire of 1997

Recalled as one of India's worst fire catastrophes, the Uphaar cinema fire on 13 June1997, in Delhi's Green Park locality resulted in 59 deaths and 103 injuries.The victims were frequent moviegoers who had goneto watch the movie"Border" by J P Dutta.

With the release ofa mini-series “Trial by Fire” on Netflix which is based on a book about the incident and the long-drawn court battle that ensued,we take an in-depth look at what exactly happened.

Uphaar Tragedy: What exactly happened on 13 June 1997?

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Onthe morning on 13 June 1997,the larger of the two transformers on the ground floor of the Uphaar cinema caught fire at around 6:55 am. Despite the fact that the fire was quickly put out, the transformer was compromised, as reported by theIndian Express.

An electrician fixed it quickly, and the theatre was then opened. The transformer caught fire again because the repair wasn't done properly after one of its cables broke free and caused a lot of sparking.

According to reports, the transformer lacked an oil soak pit, which is required by law, and allowed the burning oil to spread to other places. Even distant automobiles were engulfed in the fire.

The theatre lost power, and smoke started to fill in. While viewers seated on the lower floor were able to find an escape, those seated on the balcony were trapped. As a result,59 people died inside due to asphyxiation -suffocation from a lack of oxygen.

Over 103 peoplewere critically injured during a scramble to escape the theatre. Most importantly, it took fire tenders nearly an hour to get to the scene owing to traffic.

The lapses in safety measures

The tragic fire was caused by a number of failures in "safety measures." TheIndian Expressquoted senior advocate Harish Salve, who was appearing on behalf of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) told theDelhiHigh Court in 2007, “Safety measures, meant for panic situations, were not in place in the ill-fated theatre… the persons, who were getting financial gains from the operation of the cinema, were criminally liable for the lapses.”

The investigation stated that the generator that caught fire lacked safety features and, more crucially, was installed in a space that was being utilised as a parking lot whichmade it easier for gasoline-powered vehicles to catch fire, as reported by the Indian Express.

Additional information claimed that the generator had not received the periodic maintenance mandated by law.

When the theatre lost electricity, the movie hall became completely dark since it lacked emergency lighting, footlights, or exit lights. The audience was not informed of the fire via any public notice system, reported the Indian Express.

A protracted legal battle

Victims and surviving family members of the deceased sought to hold the theatre owners accountable in a protracted court case. 16 defendants, including the business owners Sushil and Gopal Ansal, were named in the original charge sheet submitted by the CBI conducting the investigation. However, the trial had many unexpected turns. Even now, there is a case of evidence tampering against the Ansals, thus the quest for justice continues.

The Ansal brothers were found guilty of criminal negligence in 2007, 10 years after the fire, and were given the maximum term that could be imposed in such a case: two years in jail. The Delhi High Court maintained the verdict but reduced the sentence to one year after a year.

The case was heard by the Supreme Court for over ten years. The two brothers were ordered to pay a fine of Rs 30 crores each in 2017, which was used to build a trauma centre, by the supreme court. Sushil Ansal, who has already served five months in prison, was spared additional time in prison due to his advanced age (77) and medical issues. Gopal was sentenced to a year in jail.

Compensation for the deceased's kin was set at Rs10 lakh for those above the age of 20, and Rs7.5 lakh for those under the age of 20. Each injured individual receives Rs1 lakh.

The brothers were convicted for tampering with evidence in a different case. ADelhi court sentenced both of them to seven years of simple jail in 2021. The court additionally fined each of the Ansals Rs2.5 crore. The brothers have challenged their conviction in this ongoing case.

Shekhar and Neelam Krishnamoorthy: The couple that lost their kids to the Uphaar tragedy

“We didn’t spend as much time with our children on this Earth as we have seeking justice for their murders. We are serving a living death sentence; it has been 26 years, and it is still on,” Shekhar and Neelam Krishnamoorthy toldThe Indian Expressbefore the release of the Netflix seriesthatchronicles the couple's fight for justice.

In 2022,Gopal and Sushil Ansal were released from jail. The court had indicated that the ruling was based on taking the ages of the brothers into account, despite the fact that nothing could make up for what the victims' families had lost.

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