3 years after 26/11: Brit guest Will Pike sues Taj

Will Pike who was left wheelchair-bound after the attack cites poor security

Pike fell and broke his spine while trying to climb down from his room using bed sheets

Danish Khan

Mumbai Mirror
Cover Story

In London A little over three years after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, a Londoner who broke his spine trying to escape the slaughter at the Taj Mahal Palace hotel is suing its owners, the Indian Hotels Company controlled by Tata Sons.

Will Pike, who is confined to a wheelchair now, was at the Taj with his girlfriend Kelly Doyle when terrorists struck the sea-facing hotel. He has approached the High Court in London, where the Indian Hotels Company owns two five-star properties - St. James Court and 51 Buckingham Gate.

The terrorists, who entered the hotel from the rear, had killed 31 people over a three-day siege of the hotel.

In his lawsuit, Pike, an advertising copywriter, has expressed anguish over Tata Sons chairman Ratan Tata's interview to CNN International in which he claimed the hotel staff had been warned of a terror attack. Pike has said that with foreknowledge of the attack, the hotel staff could have done much more to protect guests.

Pike and his girlfriend had hid in the bathroom when the terrorists took control of the hotel. However, as the room filled with smoke from fires set off by the terrorists, Pike smashed a window with a table to get out of the room. He used a knotted bed-sheet and curtains to lower himself and his girlfriend down. However, he fell down as the curtains and bed-sheets could not take the weight. The fall snapped his backbone.

Russell Levy, Pike's lawyer, said the Indian Hotels Company had previously refused to entertain his client's compensation claim. "This is not a case of vengeance. We recognise it was an attack by terrorist. My client is seeking claim for damages as he is confined to a wheelchair. He will need care to look for himself."

According to Levy the couple had gone to India on a pleasure trip and had booked a room in Taj as they wanted to stay in an expensive hotel in Mumbai. "It was unfortunate that the attack happened the same night in the same hotel where they were. Pike's girlfriend saw him fall down and got a shock as she thought he was dead. She was rescued by the fire brigade later."

Levy told Mumbai Mirror that the steps taken by the hotel were inadequate. When asked whether a London court could hear the case as the attacks took place in Mumbai, Levy said: "The court will decide on that. We do not think they (the Indian Hotels Company) will be at any disadvantage. It is a big group with presence in the UK and they can afford the best lawyers."

A public relations officer of the Tata Group in Mumbai on Friday refused to comment on the matter because it is subjudiced.