Ten past general secretaries of the transport ministry from 2016 to 2023 will be referred to a judicial council of a special court where former transport minister Kostas A. Karamanlis has already been referred to on a misdemeanor charge related to the Tempi rail disaster.

Karamanlis was referred to the special court on the charge following a vote in Parliament.

The case file that affects the former officeholders was initially forwarded by the appellate-level investigating magistrate in the city of Larissa, who oversaw the judicial investigation into the rail tragedy, to the Supreme Court prosecutor Konstantinos Tzavelas.

According to reports, the investigating magistrate’s referral sheet is two pages long, but does not include the names of the secretaries-general, nor does it specify to any alleged offences, as judicial sources this week said this is not compatible with current legislation.

However, judicial sources pointed out that referral to the judicial council of the 10 past ministry officials, half of whom served during the SYRIZA-ANEL government and half during the current ND government, entails a court trial on a sole misdemeanor charge, namely, the one faced by Kostas Karamanlis.

Two former ministry officials face a felony charge for their alleged omissions concerning the maintenance of the railway network.

Under the current statute, however, the judicial council can upgrade a charge from a misdemeanor to a felony, if it deems it appropriate.

One former transport minister, SYRIZA cadre Christos Spirtzis, has avoided any prosecutor given that a statute of limitations affecting top government officials has expired.

Even more importantly, the voluminous (more than 60,000 pages) two-and-a-half-year judicial investigation into the deadly accident that claimed 57 lives is reportedly nearing an end, with the case file and indictment ready to be transferred to head of the appellate level justices and prosecutor ahead of the commencement of a trial.