School fire: Term of inquiry commission extended by six months

Madras High Court today extended by six months the term of the one man Commission of Inquiry appointed by it to probe the school fire in Kumbakonam in 2004, which killed 94 children.
The first bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice T S Sivagnanam, before whom the petition filed by the Secretary of the Justice K Venkatraman Commission came up, extended the period for a further six months.
The Madras High Court had appointed Justice Venkatraman as the one-man commission entrusted with fixing the extent and percentage of negligence and liability on each of the parties in respect of the July, 16 2004 fire in Krishna English Medium School, which killed 94 children.

Justice Venkatraman, who already holds the post of the President, Puducherry State Consumer Redresser Forum, was entrusted with the additional work by the Court after the resignation of Justice P Shanmugam on health grounds.
As the date expired today, the Commission Secretary approached the High Court for extension of time.