HC rejects plea against web series based on book of Uphaar fire tragedy

The Delhi High Court on Thursday dismissed a plea by real estate tycoon Sushil Ansal for ad interim injunction against the release of a web series based on a book written by 1997 Uphaar cinema fire tragedy case victims Neelam and Shekhar Krishnamoorthy, whose two teenaged sons had died in the "unfortunate incident".

Justice Yashwant Varma said it would be wholly inappropriate to grant injunctive reliefs at the ad interim stage even before the fictional work is viewed and properly examined in its entirety in the absence of the material to the allegation that the series would carry defamatory and vilifying statements.

The web series Trial by Fire is set to be released on January 13, 2023. The court also noted the disclaimer to the web series, which merely claimed to be “inspired” by the book titled, Trial By Fire: The Tragic Tale of the Uphaar Fire Tragedy.

"Undisputedly, the horrific incident which occurred on June 13, 1997 has been the subject matter of public debate and discussion since then. The unimaginable tragedy which unfolded on that date had made a nation bow its head in shame. The negligent conduct of the plaintiff is well documented and also fell for adverse comment by our Supreme Court as would be evident from the extracts of its decision, which is an iteration of avarice and greed," the court said.

The court also found no justification to consider the grant of an ad interim injunction based on something which came to be published way back in 2016.

The bench also said it must also necessarily bear in mind at this stage that the work on which the web series is based has been penned by parents who had lost teenage children in the unfortunate incident.

"It is a story which alleges a systemic failure, and manifests a cry of anguish against the manner in which the incident was prosecuted and tried. It essentially represents their perspective and opinion. A fictional rendition of their trials and tribulations cannot, prima facie, be presumed to be defamatory. More fundamentally, their personal experience and perception of the incident or the culpability of the plaintiff would remain their belief, impression and understanding of the entire episode," the bench said.

The bench further said that information and reportage with respect to the tragedy which unfolded have remained in circulation for the past 26 years, commencing from the date when the FIR came to be recorded and right up to the ultimate conviction of the plaintiff, the press, as well as social media, have consistently tracked and reported developments relating to the said crime.