Coaching centre deaths: Bail to 4 co-owners of basement denied

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Friday rejected the bail applications of four jailed co-owners of a coaching centre basement where three civil services aspirants drowned last month but observed that they were not “exclusively responsible” for the incident.

The role of Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) officials who kept the matter of illegal use of the basement pending, even after a complaint from a citizen, speaks volumes about their complicity, the court said.

It hoped that the Central Bureau of Investigation, probing the July 27 incident at the Rau’s IAS Study Circle in Old Rajindra Nagar, would bring all culprits to the book.

Principal District and Sessions Judge Anju Bajaj Chandna denied bail to Parvinder Singh, Tajinder Singh, Harvinder Singh and Sarbjit Singh, saying the CBI probe was at an initial stage and their specific role had to be ascertained.

Besides, the issue of violation of building bye-laws and encroachment over the drainage (in the area) needed to be probed, she said.

The court said a month prior to the incident, Kishore Singh Kushwaha, a resident of Karol Bagh, had complained to authorities, specifically against Rau’s IAS Study Circle for running a classroom in the basement without permission. He had expressed apprehension of a major accident, it said.

“Despite reminders sent in this regard in the month of July, it is painful to note that authorities kept sitting on the said complaint and did not take prompt action, otherwise precious lives could have been saved,” it said.

The court denied bail to the four joint owners of a basement in Old Rajinder Nagar, linked to a tragic incident at a coaching center, citing their awareness of safety risks.

The court emphasised that the illegal use of the basement, despite encroachments and drainage issues, contributed to the incident.

It also highlighted the failure of MCD officers to act on complaints. The court stressed that the owners’ surrender was insufficient for bail, as the CBI’s investigation was in a

crucial stage.