After 10 long years, Kottayam Crime Branch SP Sabu Mathew submitted the second chargesheet of the Thekkady boat tragedy in the Thodupuzha Sessions Court on Thursday. The Crime Branch submitted its first chargesheet in September 2019.
It was on September 30, 2009, that the double-decker passenger boat, Jalakanyaka, sank in Thekkady Lake at Periyar Tiger Reserve in Kerala's Idukki district. The tragedy claimed the lives of 45 passengers, including seven children and 23 women. A total of 82 people were on the boat at the time of the incident. Most tourists on the boat hailed from Kolkata, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and New Delhi.
The double-decker boat started to sink when the tourists rushed to one side of the boat to see a herd of wild elephants. The boat did not have safety measures like life jackets or a lifeguard in place at the time of the accident.
After the accident, the state government ordered a probe to conducted by a judicial committee, and another one by the Crime Branch. Retired District Judge Maitheen Kunju was appointed as the head of the judicial commission. Former Kottayam Crime Branch Superintendent of Police A Valson was appointed as the probe official in the case.
As part of the probe, the commission found 22 lapses from the time the tenders were floated to build the boat to when it became operational.
In December 2014, the Crime Branch submitted a chargesheet before the Thodupuzha Sessions Court. The court, however, rejected the chargesheet, noting that there were two types of crimes -- perpetrated by those who directly and indirectly caused the accident. It then directed the Crime Branch to submit the second chargesheet.
However, for the last five years, no further probe was carried out in the case. In June this year, SP Sabu Mathew took over the case, conducted the probe and submitted the second chargesheet.
The second chargesheet had two parts: one on those who were directly involved in the accident's occurrence; second, those who were indirectly involved with the accident.
“Members of the crew including the boat driver, helper and ticket issuer were named in the first part of the chargesheet. The second chargesheet included the names of the company that owned the boat, maker of the boat and officials who issued its fitness certificate,” Sabu Mathew told TNM.