New Delhi: A Delhi court on Saturday sent all six accused in the case in which three IAS aspirants tragically drowned in Old Rajender Nagar last month to four days in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) custody, a month after they were arrested.
Three civil services aspirants, Shreya Yadav, Tanya Soni, and Nevin Dalvin, were killed after flooding in the base of the Rau’s IAS Study Circle on July 27 evening.
Three civil services aspirants, Shreya Yadav, Tanya Soni, and Nevin Dalvin, were killed after flooding in the base of the Rau’s IAS Study Circle on July 27 evening.
The CBI, which took over the case from the Delhi police after the high court order on August 2, had registered a case for the offences of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, causing death by negligence, voluntarily causing hurt, negligent conduct w.r.t pulling down, repairing, or constructing building, etc., and common intention.
The high court had transferred the probe in light of concerns regarding the quality of the initial investigation.
The CBI, in its recent application, alleged that the basement of the building was being used for the purpose of running a library-cum-exam hall where students used to sit for long hours for self-study and taking exams, “despite the occupancy certificate issued to the building explicitly stated that the basement was to be used for the specific purpose such as parking, household storage, and car lift”.
The agency also claimed that the building was being used to run a coaching centre without a fire safety certificate. It said that during the investigation it was also found out that a show cause notice was issued to the owner/occupier of RAU’s IAS for violation of Delhi’s Master Plan Delhi, 2021, and for misuse of property, to which a response was filed by Gupta, owner and CEO of RAU’s IAS, stating that he has applied for a fire safety certificate, which was issued by the Delhi Fire Services on July 9, 2024.
The remand application was opposed by the defence counsels for all six accused, stating that no specific ground or justification has been given by the CBI for taking them into custody.
Advocate Kaushal Jeet Kait, the counsel for the four joint owners of the basement, also submitted before the court that Sarabjit Singh had recently undergone surgery and is on medication, which should be allowed during his custody.
The court, after hearing the submissions, noted that custodial interrogation is to aid the investigation and is one of the effective modes of investigation into an alleged crime.
“Considering the submissions in the application and in particular the scope of investigation in terms of the order dated 02.08.2024 of the Hon’ble High Court of Delhi, custodial interrogation of the accused persons would be necessary for the purpose of investigation and for ascertaining the role played by various individuals who might have been involved in corrupt practices or criminal negligence,” the court said.
The court further directed that the accused persons would be medically examined as per rules and allowed the counsels of the accused persons to meet them for 30 minutes daily.
Gupta, along with Deshpal Singh, was arrested on July 28 and produced before the court, from where he was sent to judicial custody and has been in custody since then. The remaining four accused were apprehended on the evening of July 28.
The Delhi police, who were initially conducting the probe in the case, had arrested five other accused—Manuj Kathuria, the driver of the SUV, who allegedly crashed into the gate of the coaching center, leading to the flooding of the basement, and four joint owners of the basement.
Kathuria was earlier granted bail in the case while the bail applications of the joint owners of the basement were dismissed.
The joint owners of the basement, who have been denied bail by the magistrate court as well as the sessions court, have now approached the Delhi high court seeking bail in the case.
