JUDGMENT

Rajendra Babu, J.-A fire broke out at Uphaar theatre on the evening of June 30, 1997 in consequence of which a number of persons were either killed or injured. An Association was formed of victims of Uphaar tragedy. They filed a writ petition on the ground that the public authorities failed to discharge their statutory obligations and the standard of safeguards set out under the statute and the rules framed thereunder for the purpose of preventing a hazards of breaking out of fire was not observed. The license and permits to the theatre were issued contrary to the mandatory provisions of the statute and rules. The petitioners thereafter sought for adequate compensation to the victims in the said tragedy from the respondents for failure to observe the statutory obligations and also on the basis of the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution.

2. The respondents in the writ petition, who are petitioners before us, raised a preliminary objection that the writ petition is not maintainable on various grounds that the extraordinary remedy of a writ petition cannot be used in case of a break out of fire in a theatre which is the result of complex series of causative