Two years since the Novi Sad canopy collapse: commemoration and three ongoing legal cases
A memorial will be held at 11:52 on November 1; Serbia has three separate legal proceedings tied to the collapse but no final judgment.
On the second anniversary of the canopy collapse at Novi Sad Railway Station — a disaster that killed 16 people, including scientist and researcher Vasko Sazdovski from Sveti Nikole who worked at the Biosens Institute in Novi Sad — a memorial gathering will be held at the station at 11:52 on Sunday, November 1.
Three separate legal tracks, no final verdict
Despite multiple investigations, Serbia has not produced a final, binding court judgment over the tragedy. Authorities are currently running three separate legal proceedings linked to the collapse.
The first case is before courts in Novi Sad. In July of this year the Appellate Court in Novi Sad confirmed an indictment against 13 people, among them former construction minister Goran Vesić; the defendants face various criminal charges related to the collapse. The Higher Court in Novi Sad has said the preparatory hearing has not been scheduled because the full case file is currently held by the Supreme Court of Serbia.
The second proceeding began in Belgrade: the Higher Public Prosecutor's Office filed an indictment in March 2025 against three people for negligent performance of duty. That case was soon transferred to the Public Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime, triggering a dispute over jurisdiction. The Appellate Court in Belgrade has annulled the indictment three times so far because the question of which prosecutor brought the charge remained unresolved, further delaying the start of a trial.
The third track is an investigation led by the Public Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime into suspected financial abuses during the reconstruction of the Railway Station. Among the suspects named in that probe are former ministers Goran Vesić and Tomislav Momirović, along with twelve other individuals.
Organizers called the memorial to coincide precisely with the moment the canopy collapsed two years ago. In a social-media announcement the students who organized the gathering wrote: "The students invite you on Sunday, November 1, to attend the commemorative gathering dedicated to the victims of the collapse of the canopy at the Novi Sad Railway Station. Let's preserve together the memory of the dead."
Photo: press material from the event
