Delhi high court slams govt, police over coaching centre flood

The Delhi high court on Wednesday indicated that it would transfer the investigation into the deaths of three students in the waterlogged basement of a coaching centre in Old Rajinder Nagar to the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) or the Lokpal, as it came down hard on the Delhi Police, the city’s government and its civic body.

The court criticised the police for conducting a “strange” and “shoddy” probe and lambasted the Delhi government for failing to upgrade the city’s infrastructure due to what it termed a “freebies culture”. A bench comprising acting chief justice Manmohan and justice Tushar Rao Gedela did not mince words, calling the incident a case of “criminal neglect” and a symptom of “infrastructure breakdown at the larger level”.

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The bench expressed dismay that while the police had arrested a passerby, Manuj Kathuria, who was driving a car, they had not acted against or even investigated the role of Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) officials, whose negligence contributed to the tragedy.

Ordering the personal presence of the investigating officer, the deputy commissioner of police (DCP) concerned, and the MCD commissioner with all relevant files on August 2, the court emphasised the need to fix responsibility for the investigation and suggested that it be placed under a statutory mechanism.

The court’s intervention came at a time when the conflict between the lieutenant governor and the Delhi government over who controls the Capital’s administrative machinery is at a boiling point. The coaching centre tragedy has only intensified the political blame game, with each side accusing the other of negligence while the city’s administration apparently remains paralysed by the ongoing power struggle between LG VK Saxena and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government.

“There is some sort of strange investigation which is going on. It is being done in a very strange manner. No MCD officials have been hauled up till now. Has he [the investigating officer] investigated the role of the MCD officer? Unauthorised construction happens in collusion with the police. How come there was so much water over there? Delhi Police have arrested some bystander, a driver who was driving a car there. The police officers who are investigating the same, what are they doing?” the court remarked to the MCD’s counsel, Manu Chaturvedi.

The bench further warned that if responsibility was not properly assigned, they would have no choice but to transfer it to a central agency. “The responsibility of the investigation needs to be fixed. If it is not, then we will transfer the investigation under some central agency. We will either bring it under the Central Vigilance Commission Act or the Lokpal. We would like it to be done under some statutory mechanism. We will pass a straight order over there, fixing responsibility in this case. This is a serious incident. It is infrastructure breakdown at the larger level. First, it’s a case of negligence,” it said.

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The court was responding to a plea filed by advocate Rudra Vikram Singh, representing Kutumb, a social organisation, seeking a high-level committee to probe the incident. The petition highlighted the dire living conditions of students around coaching institutes, describing them as a “living hell,” and alleged widespread illegal commercial activities in residential areas of Delhi, enabled by bribes and corruption within the MCD, Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and the Delhi government.

During the hearing, MCD’s counsel defended the corporation by noting that six officials, including a junior engineer responsible for the area, had been suspended. However, the court was unimpressed, criticising the MCD for only targeting junior officers while ignoring the responsibility of senior officials who oversee supervision.

“You have suspended the junior-most officer. What happens to the senior-most officer who has to supervise? The senior officers are not moving out of their AC offices. This is a case of neglect. It is a case of criminal neglect. We have MLAs, MLCs, but yet the conditions are so bad,” the bench remarked.

The court also took aim at the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Delhi government, condemning it for prioritising freebies over essential infrastructure upgrades, particularly the city’s drainage system, which has struggled to cope with the capital’s burgeoning population.

“We are not prepared for anything, and our infrastructure cannot take care of anything. Population is touching 3.3 crore in the city when it had to accommodate 6-7 lakh people. Why was this century-old infra not upgraded in the first instance when you’re liberalizing the byelaws? You are permitting multi-storied buildings, but there is no proper drain. Your civic authorities are bankrupt. You want freebie culture. You’re not collecting money, so you’re not spending any money,” it commented.

The bench directed the authorities to remove all encroachments from drains by August 2 and ordered MCD officials to conduct a site visit. “There is a fundamental malice over here… the physical, financial, and administrative infrastructure is not at par with the present day’s need. There is a major disconnect. Today the planning is also extremely poor for whatever reason it is. From 1980 onwards, there has been no mention of drains. There is no master plan on drains. It is absolutely chaotic at the ground level,” it lamented.

The incident occurred at 6.35pm on July 27 when rainwater filled the basement of the coaching centre. Although the police and fire department were alerted by 7:10pm, the situation required the intervention of an NDRF team, as divers were needed to reach the trapped students. The basement had been designated as a parking and storage area, but it was being used as a library, contrary to the building plan.

In the wake of the incident, several arrests were made, including the owner-cum-CEO of Rau’s IAS Study Circle, Abhishek Gupta, and coordinator DP Singh, on charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder. The police also arrested four other individuals, including the basement’s owners and the driver of an SUV, whose actions allegedly worsened the situation. The SUV owner was arrested on Monday, as his vehicle allegedly created waves that caused the institute’s gate to break and flood the basement.

Following the tragedy, multiple inquiries were launched by lieutenant governor VK Saxena, Delhi water minister Atishi, and the MCD. Delhi mayor Shelly Oberoi also ordered a crackdown on all coaching centres operating out of basements.