2024 coaching centre deaths | Difficult to believe MCD officials had no knowledge about violations: Court asks CBI to resume probe

Weeks after the CBI told a Delhi court that no further investigation was required into thedeaths of three UPSC aspirants in the flooded basementof a coaching centre in Old Rajinder Nagar in 2024, the court on Thursday asked the central agency to resume the probe in the matter.

TheDelhicourt passed the directions after a protest petition — seeking further investigation into the matter — was filed last month by advocate Abhijit Anand, who represented Dalvin Suresh, father of Nevin Dalvin, one of the deceased.

“…the IO (investigating officer) was duty-bound to investigate the issue of criminal negligence as well as dereliction of duties and corrupt practices.

But as detailed above, the IO has not investigated from the perspective of dereliction of duties by the officials concerned in regard to the usage of the said building as coaching center in the basement,” said Principal District & Sessions Judge Dinesh Bhatt of the Rouse Avenue Court.

He added, “Merely to say that the lowest official in the hierarchy did not perform his duty will not suffice in the matter as it was the duty of the supervising officers to see that the necessary compliance were being carried out on the ground and also their subordinates were putting up proper and complete reports after actual inspections.”
The Judge directed the IO to carry out further investigation regarding probable dereliction of duties or corrupt practices by the officials of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), “which have led to the institute having continued in its illegal use of the basement, thereby being instrumental in loss of lives of innocent citizens and to file report as per law.”
“…a huge structure consisting of more than six floors catering to hundreds of students was operational for numbers of years, could not have gone unnoticed by the civic authorities who have a duty to report any non-compliance or violation of laws on a day-to-day basis.

It is thus very difficult to believe that none of the supervisory officers…could have been aware of the illegal and unauthorised use of the basement…,” the Judge said.

He underlined, “…It is difficult to believe that the entire hierarchy of the officials of the MCD would have no knowledge of the same or otherwise would have at least pointed out the lapses on the part of the officials for not mentioning the specific non-confirming norms as per MPD(Master Plan Delhi) 2021 in their note or show cause notice (that was issued to the coaching centre).

The process followed by the officials after the issuance of show cause notice also points out to the fact that they had only asked for producing fire NOC and no further compliance was either noted or asked.”
Three IAS aspirants had drowned in the flooded basement of Rau’s IAS coaching centre in Old Rajinder Nagar in July 2024.

Earlier in February, the CBI had told the court that no further probe was required in the case even as it highlighted that the role of MCD and Delhi Fire Service (DFS) officials in conspiracy with the owner of the institute had also come to the fore.

“There is no justification for any further investigation as all material evidence has been collected and examined from all relevant angles,” the CBI had said.

The submissions were made in response to the protest petition where Anand had said that the CBI had not “conducted a free and fair investigation”.

The probe was conducted in a “sham and casual manner,” the petition had claimed.

It had said that the “CBI had not seized the sanctioned building plan for educational occupancy” and had not investigated the case from all angles as per directions of the Delhi High Court.

“CBI has not even investigated the aspect of the basement having a lift-lobby and car-lift as per the occupancy-cum-completion certificate,” it said.

According to the chargesheet filed by the CBI, under enforcement action, the MCD sealed 52 basements between August 4 and September 4, 2024, including those used by coaching centres, libraries, and private offices.

In the supplementary chargesheet filed last April, the CBI had named Abhishek Gupta, partner of M/s Rau’s IAS Study Circle; Arnav Kumar Dutta, Junior Engineer, MCD, Karol Bagh Zone; Udai Vir Singh, Assistant Divisional Officer (ADO), South West Division, Fire Station Dwarka Sector 6; Vedpal, Divisional Officer, South West Division, Shankar Road Fire Station; and Ashok Narang, Consultant, M/s Rau’s IAS Study Circle under sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

It was also pointed out by the Judge that the concerned JE of the zone had put up a photograph on August 3, 2024, along with a note that the institute was not complying with the provisions of MPD 2021.

“The said note was taken up by respective officers in the hierarchy and finally a show cause notice was issued to the occupants.

But there were no details of inspection or violation found at site mentioned either in the aforesaid note or the show cause notice…it appears that either no inspection was carried out or details of violations were specifically omitted,” the court ruled.