Medigadda barrage: Police Rule Out Foul Play, Say Poor Design

Hyderabad: Bhupalpally district superintendent of police Kiran Khare on Tuesday said the damage to the Medigadda barrage was, prima facie, due to a structural fault.

According to a press communiqué shared in the SP’s WhatsApp group, Khare ruled out the possibility of any conspiracy or mischief, following scientific investigation carried out by police teams. He said the police registered a case under Section 427 of Indian Penal Code (mischief causing damage to the amount of Rs 50) and Section 3 of Public Property (Prevention of Damage) Act.

However, the SP released another statement late in the evening in which any mention of the prima facie finding of structural fault and the ruling out of conspiracy were missing. He said the police had taken a petition from the assistant engineer of the irrigation department regarding damage to the barrage and a request to investigate matter thoroughly from all angles.

Police have formed a special team to investigate the matter and were collecting evidence through Forensic Science Laboratory and Clues team, he said.

He said the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) expert committee had inspected the barrage. Police would take a view after the committee submitted its findings. As per the requisition given by the irrigation department, the police had stopped the movement of vehicles and the people over the barrage for safety reasons, he added.

Sources said the police deciding that it was a structural fault could land the construction giant L&T in trouble and might force police to book it under charges of negligence or causing damage to public property.

Interestingly, the IPC Section 427 clamped by police in the FIR states, “Whoever commits mischief and thereby causes loss or damage to the amount of fifty rupees or upwards, shall be punishable with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or both.”

When the SP was contacted about the contradictions in the statement, he told Deccan Chronicle that the police would investigate technical flaws after getting the report of the expert committee.