HC Grants Anticipatory Bail to Three Directors, Denies Relief to Five Others The Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court on Monday granted anticipatory bail to three accused in the deadly explosion at the SBL Energy Ltd plant in Raulgaon, Nagpur district, which killed at least 26 people. The court, presided over by Justice Rajnish Vyas, allowed pre-arrest bail applications for independent directors Ravindra Pokharna, Satyavati Parashar, and Manoj Kumar Prasad. However, it rejected similar relief for senior executives Kedar Pachputre, Alok Awasthi, Shravan Kumar, Alok Chaudhary, and Sanjay Chaudhary, citing the severity of the allegations and the material on record. The explosion occurred on March 1 and is considered one of the deadliest industrial accidents in recent years, prompting concerns about the enforcement of industrial safety norms at both state and national levels. During the hearing, the defense argued for protection from arrest, while the prosecution opposed the pleas, emphasizing the fatal consequences of negligence. The court evaluated the submissions and granted partial relief, allowing anticipatory bail to three applicants while declining it for the remaining five. Lawyers Amol Mardikar and Aditya Chaudhary represented the accused. According to police investigations, the company was allegedly in "serious violation of safety standards," a finding corroborated by reports from the Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health and the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation. These reports highlighted multiple lapses, including the absence of risk assessments, inadequate firefighting systems, failure to appoint safety officers, and lack of proper training for workers. Authorities linked these deficiencies directly to the scale of the disaster.#bombay_high_court #nagpur_bench #raulgaon #sbl_energy_ltd #rajnish_vyas
Untrained Workers at SBL Energy Ltd Linked to Explosion That Killed 26, Police Tell Bombay High Court Nagpur: The Nagpur Rural Police have informed the Bombay High Court that untrained and unskilled workers were involved in handling hazardous chemicals at SBL Energy Ltd’s facility in Raulgaon (Katol taluka), where a devastating explosion on March 1 killed 26 people. The police submitted an affidavit to the court, detailing significant lapses in industrial safety protocols that may have contributed to the tragedy. The case is being heard by a division bench comprising Justices Anil Kilor and Raj Wakode, which is examining a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by social activist Jammu Anand. The police affidavit, submitted by Superintendent of Police (Rural) Harssh Poddar, outlined multiple violations at the company. According to the document, SBL Energy Ltd failed to appoint the required two qualified safety officers and two medical officers, instead employing only one safety officer for a workforce of 809 employees. The report also revealed that only 183 workers had undergone mandatory medical examinations, leaving the majority of the staff without proper health assessments. Additionally, the company was found to have only a single ambulance available at the site, with no emergency medical equipment or trained personnel on standby. The production unit lacked a CCTV system, which could have provided critical footage of the incident. The explosion occurred on March 1, resulting in the immediate deaths of 17 women workers. The toll rose to 26 as more victims succumbed to their injuries during treatment. The police emphasized that the incident was not an isolated accident but a consequence of systemic negligence in adhering to safety regulations.#bombay_high_court #raulgaon #nagpur_rural_police #sbl_energy_ltd #jammu_anand
