Fast-track payout demand
Jul 30, 2013 (Menafn – Gulf Daily News – McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) –A BAHRAINI lawyer has urged authorities to fast-track a compensation case for the families of 16 Indians, who died in a labour camp fire seven years ago today.
Bahrain’s most lethal fire ripped through the workers’ accommodation in Gudaibiya in the early hours of July 30, 2006.
The fire broke out in an accommodation occupied by around 200 workers as they slept at around 2.30am. Most of those inside managed to escape.
The High Civil Court awarded compensation between BD33,000 and BD43,000 to the victims’ relatives in 2009.
However, lawyer Mohammed Al Watani said the families have not received a single dinar since the men’s employer, Royal Tower Construction, filed an appeal.
“Despite the court verdict in our favour, we are still waiting for compensation amount for the families of the 16 Indian men who died in the fire,” he told the GDN yesterday.
“They have not received a single dinar from their company Royal Tower Construction even seven years after the incident.
“The case should be put on the fast track immediately as it has taken a long time and is still going on.”
The Higher Appeals Court found a company supervisor responsible for the incident earlier this month, added Mr Al Watani.
“We want the employer of these men to be held accountable and not the supervisor,” he said.
“They will get compensation from the employer and not the engineer.”
Mr Al Watani, who is representing the families, claimed the company was deliberately dragging out the compensation cases.
Nine of the cases were being reviewed in an appeals court, five in the Execution Court and two in the Cassation Court.
Mr Al Watani said in 15 cases the verdict has been in their favour and one case is still pending in the Cassation Court.
Mr Al Watani said each of the deceased workers is eligible to different compensations ranging from BD14,000 up to BD25,000.
“These were poor people who came here to earn a decent living. Let’s look at the human side of it and not the political and other factors,” he said.
He said the legal team regularly communicated with the Indian Embassy to inform them of the latest developments in the cases.
“At this stage, all I want to say on the seventh anniversary of this tragedy is that justice should not be denied and delayed further for these workers,” he said.
Royal Tower Construction officials were unavailable for comment when contacted by the GDN yesterday.
The Industry and Commerce Ministry website shows the Bahraini owner of the company did not renew its commercial registration since 2007.
The Manama Municipal Council had previously warned the company to evacuate its employees from the building for safety reasons.
The fire broke out only three days after the end of a grace period granted to the company to find alternative accommodation for its staff.
Former Indian Ambassador Balkrishna Shetty said workers were crammed into the three-storey building in inhuman conditions.
Labour inspectors found wooden partitions had been used to create more small rooms inside the property while survivors described how they lived in poor conditions with sealed windows.
Those who died in the tragedy were Murugesan Rajavel, Raja Devandran, Madhuramuthu Balusamy, Poomalai Duraisamy, Poomalai Udaiyar Muthuvel, Sengamalam Senthil, Rengasamy Ramachandran, Kumarasamy Udaiyar Kannadasan, Chinnadurai Natesan, Duraisamy Udaiyar Sivaprakasam, Arumugam Palanimuthu, Thukkaiyan Kumar, Subramanian Muthaiyan, Perumaludiyar Rajarathinam, Murugan Subramaniyan and Velumayil Udaiyar Shankar. sandy@gdn.com.bh
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