2024 Rajkot Gaming zone fire: Dhaval Thakkar, the main accused in the Rajkot TRP Game Zone fire incident, was arrested by Banaskantha crime branch police and Rajkot Police from Rajasthan on Sunday. Dhaval Thakkar, the fourth accused to be arrested in the case, is a resident of Abu Road in Rajasthan and had fled after the fire broke out in the game zone, which claimed 28 lives, including four children.
Earlier, three men – Yuvrajsinh Solanki, Nitin Jain and Rahul Rathod – were arrested in connection with the Rajkot game zone fire. The court of additional judicial magistrate BP Thakar remanded the three accused in police custody for two weeks, special public prosecutor Tushar Gokani said.
Tushar Gokani told reporters that Yuvrajsinh Solanki “tried to put up an act” in his bid to express before the court that he was filled with remorse for whatever happened.
“When he entered the court, he tried to project that he had remorse for the incident and everyone felt that he was crying. After five minutes, he was laughing and arguing with the court,” Tushar Gokani said while interacting with reporters.
“This very accused seemed like he was crying as soon as he entered the court but in just a few minutes he started laughing and he said that ‘these kinds of things happen’, which was taken in a serious note by the honourable court,” Gokani added.
Gokani also said the accused were brought before the court and further police custody of 14 days was sought. Out of the six accused named in the FIR, fourt have been arrested so far.
"The main ground of remand was that they were not cooperating during the investigation. They (the accused) are giving 'evasive replies' to whatever questions are asked and whatever documents are asked. They are saying it was burnt in the incident. They are not cooperating in the investigation and that was the main ground--to seek their cooperation and elicit the truth from them," Gokani alleged.
An FIR was registered against six partners of the TRP game zone on charges of culpable homicide after a blaze there killed 28 persons on May 25.
Two partners in Raceway Enterprise, which operated the TRP game zone, Yuvrajsinh Solanki and Rahul Rathod, and the recreation centre manager, Nitin Jain, are now in police custody.
The six accused – proprietor of Dhaval Corporation Dhaval Thakkar, as well as partners of Raceway Enterprises Ashoksinh Jadeja, Kiritsinh Jadeja, Prakashchand Hiran, Yuvrajsinh Solanki, and Rahul Rathod – had partnered to run the game zone where the fire occurred.
They have been booked under IPC sections 304 (culpable homicide), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 337 (causing hurt by an act that endangers the life or personal safety of others), 338 (causing grievous hurt to a person by doing an act that endangers their life or personal safety) and 114 (someone present when offence is committed).
