site.btaNovi Sad Appellate Court Unblocks Criminal Proceedings in 2024 Canopy Collapse Tragedy

The Court of Appeal in Novi Sad has overturned the decision to suspend criminal proceedings against a former Serbian minister and five other officials channel charged in connection with the 2024 tragedy in the Northern Serbian city, regional television channel N1 reported on Monday.

The ruling removes the obstacle to scheduling a trial in the case of the collapse of the canopy at the recently renovated Novi Sad Railway Station, in which 16 people were killed and one was seriously injured.

Earlier, the Higher Court in Novi Sad annulled the part of the indictment concerning former transport minister Goran Vesic, former Railway Infrastructure director Jelena Tanaskovic, and four other defendants. However, the Higher Public Prosecutor's Office in Novi Sad appealed that decision.

The original indictment over the canopy collapse alleges that a total of 13 people were responsible for "serious criminal offences against public safety", namely by allowing the facility to be put into use even though construction work was still in progress and by failing to properly maintain the railway station's structure.

More than 20 months have passed since the Novi Sad tragedy. Three separate legal proceedings are underway, but none of them has yet reached the trial stage.

The tragedy also gave rise to a student movement in Serbia that has led staged massive-scale anti-government protests, demanding anti-corruption measures, a fair trial for those responsible, and the holding of new parliamentary elections.