T’puram: A key prosecution witness in the 2016 Puttingal Devi Temple fireworks blast case on Friday told a Kollam court that he had repeatedly complained to the district administration years before the tragedy, seeking that the competitive fireworks display be shifted away from residential areas.Sudheesh, examined as the prosecution’s 15th witness (listed as charge witness No. 18), deposed before the trial court that he had submitted complaints to the district collector in 2012 and 2014, requesting that the fireworks display be conducted at a safer location. He said the temple committee failed to comply with the stipulated safety conditions despite directions that the display should be held at least 200m away from houses.The witness told the court that the fireworks storage area was barely about 30m from his house and that repeated displays had caused damage to nearby homes. He also said another resident, Pankajakshi, had raised similar safety concerns before the district administration and that permission for the 2016 fireworks display had not been granted.According to his testimony, fireworks failed to shoot into the air as intended and instead exploded near ground level. Sparks allegedly fell on stacked fireworks, triggering the massive explosion that destroyed the fireworks shed, nearby structures and a KSEB transformer. He attributed the disaster to negligence in handling the fireworks.Two other prosecution witnesses, Brahmanandan and Babu, however, turned hostile during the trial. The prosecution had sought to establish through them that members of the temple committee had allegedly decided on the eve of the festival to conduct the competitive fireworks display irrespective of whether official permission was granted. Both witnesses denied knowledge of such a meeting, following which they were declared hostile and cross-examined by the prosecution.The court has summoned three prosecution witnesses for examination on Thursday, while two other witnesses will be examined on Friday.The April 9, 2016, explosion at the temple festival claimed 110 lives, injured 656 people and damaged 357 houses besides causing losses to KSEB. Of the 59 persons originally arrayed as accused, 16 have since died. One accused remains absconding, while the trial continues against the remaining accused.
