Yesterday, On 3rd August, In the UPSC aspirants’ death case, the court has dismissed the bail pleas and instructed the petitioners to approach the competent court for further action. The decision highlights the court’s stance on jurisdictional propriety.
New Delhi: The Tis Hazari court on Saturday dismissed the bail pleas of the co-owners of the basement where three civil services aspirants died due to flooding, advising them to approach the appropriate court as the Delhi High Court transferred the investigation to the CBI.
Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Rakesh Kumar, after reviewing the submissions from Delhi police, dismissed the bail pleas of the accused, Harvinder, Tejinder, Parvinder, and Sarabjeet.
The court granted the accused the liberty to approach the competent court. Additional Public Prosecutor (APP) Atul Srivastav represented the Delhi police and informed the court that the investigation had been handed over to the CBI by the High Court the previous day. Defence counsels Amit Chaddha, Kaushal Jeet Kait, Daksh Gupta, and Jatin Gupta represented the accused.
Defense counsel Amit Chaddha argued,
“There is no Regular Case (RC) filed by the CBI to date. Can an accused be left without a remedy?”
ASJ Rakesh Kumar responded that he could not hear the bail applications under the “changed circumstances” since the case had been transferred to the CBI.
The ASJ advised,
“It would be better for you (defense counsel) to withdraw the application.”
Chaddha urged the court to release the accused on interim bail.
However, the ASJ stated,
“When I cannot hear the application, how can I grant relief?”
Consequently, the defense counsel requested liberty to approach the competent court.
The Delhi Police charged the co-owners with culpable homicide and other offenses. The three civil services aspirants died in the basement of Rau’s IAS Study Circle due to flooding.
On the night of July 27, in Old Rajendra Nagar, central Delhi, three UPSC aspirants died due to flooding from heavy rains. On Friday, the Delhi High Court transferred the investigation into their deaths to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) due to the seriousness of the incidents and potential corruption by public servants. The High Court directed the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) to appoint a senior officer to oversee the CBI investigation.
The High Court criticized the Delhi Police for not summoning MCD officials for questioning and for failing to investigate the source of the water entering the basement, instead arresting a driver, which implied a lack of thoroughness. The court noted that water issues affect everyone, including private residences, and highlighted the broader problem of encroachments on the Yamuna River, emphasizing that water does not discriminate and can impact anyone.
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The court warned of criminal neglect and cautioned that such tragedies might recur every monsoon if the current situation persists. Meanwhile, protests by civil services aspirants against the deaths continued for the seventh day on Saturday. The protests began on July 27, following the deaths of three aspirants in the basement of Rau’s IAS Study Circle after rainwater flooded it.
The MCD has since sealed the basements of several coaching centers in the area, citing violations of building bye-laws for using basements for commercial purposes.