New Delhi: A city court on Friday dismissed the bail applications of four co-owners of a coaching centre basement where three civil service aspirants recently drowned, saying that the probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the incident was at an initial and crucial stage and their specific role had to be ascertained.
Specific role of applicants needs to be ascertained: court
Principal District and Sessions Judge Anju Bajaj Chandna, while denying the bail to Tejinder Singh, Parvinder Singh, Harvinder Singh and Sarabjeet Singh, said that their submissions that they themselves surrendered before the police was not enough to grant them bail when the investigation by the CBI in the case is at an initial and crucial stage where important evidence in the case was being collected and witnesses were being examined.
“The issue of violation of building bye-laws and encroachment over the drainage system needs to be investigated and the specific role of the applicants needs to be ascertained,” the court said.
Court rejected submission of co-owners that knowledge of culpable homicide cannot be attributed to them
The court also rejected their submission that knowledge of culpable homicide cannot be attributed to them, saying “Knowledge means being conscious about the possibility of such an incident. It was sufficient that offenders were knowing that by permitting illegal use of the basement they are endangering the life of others. Permitting illegal use of the basement has a direct nexus with the unfortunate incident.”
System has contributed substantially to occurrence but this does not reduce fault of applicants: court
The court further said that “The system has contributed substantially to the occurrence but this does not reduce the fault of the applicants (co-owners of basement) particularly when the failure of stormwater drains has been mainly due to encroachments and obstructions.”
The court also said that “The role of MCD officers who kept the matter of illegal use of the basement pending without taking any action, more particularly not paying attention to the recent complaint of Kishore Singh Kushwaha speaks volume about their complicity” and hoped that “CBI would deeply and thoroughly investigate the matter and bring all culprits to the book.”
Three civil service aspirants drowned in the coaching centre basement on July 27
Three civil service aspirants – Shreya Yadav, Tanya Soni, and Nevin Dalwin – lost their lives after the basement of IAS coaching centre – Rau’s IAS Study Circle – in Old Rajendra Nagar was flooded following rain on July 27.
Delhi High Court transferred investigation from Delhi Police to CBI
The investigation of the incident, which was initially being carried out by the Delhi Police, was transferred to the CBI by the Delhi High Court on a pleas seeking probe by the high-level committee into the incident.
