The Delhi High Court, presided by Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma, has called for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to weigh in on the bail applications of the four co-owners of a coaching center basement in Old Rajinder Nagar, where a tragic incident led to the deaths of three civil services aspirants in July. The owners, Parvinder Singh, Tajinder Singh, Harvinder Singh, and Sarbjit Singh, are currently held in connection with the incident.
During the hearing, Justice Sharma emphasized the gravity of the case, describing the event as “very unfortunate” and stating that it “should not be an ordinary case.” He instructed the CBI’s counsel to present “concrete evidence” regarding the accountability of the basement’s co-owners.
The tragic incident occurred on July 27 when heavy rainfall in central Delhi led to the flooding of the basement under Rau’s IAS Study Circle, resulting in the deaths of Shreya Yadav, 25, from Uttar Pradesh, Tanya Soni, 25, from Telangana, and Nevin Delvin, 24, from Kerala.
The high court has also permitted the father of one of the deceased aspirants to submit a “short reply” to the bail applications, providing a platform for the families of the victims to voice their concerns.
The matter, initially handled by Delhi Police, has been escalated to the CBI and is being investigated under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including section 105 which pertains to culpable homicide not amounting to murder. This follows an earlier decision by a sessions court to reject the bail applications, citing the need to clarify the specific roles of each accused as the CBI investigation is still in its preliminary stages.