More than a month after three UPSC aspirants were drowned in the basement library of Rau's IAS Study Circle in Delhi's Old Rajinder Nagar, the Central Bureau of Investigation told a special court that the owner knowingly" used the premises for commerical purposes in violation of norms set by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD).
Earlier, the post mortem report revealed that the three victims — Nevin Dalvin, Shreya Yadav and Tanya Soni, and — died due to asphyxia caused by drowning on July 27. The tragedy occurred when rainwater breached the steel gates of the basement library.
The CBI, which took over the case from Delhi Police on August 2, said Rau's IAS Study Circle was run without the required fire and safety certificate, flouting the 2023 guidelines set by the Delhi High Court.
The charges slapped against the accused include criminal negligence, dereliction of duties and corrupt practices indulged in by any person, including officials of the local authorities.
Pointing out the "seriousness" of the case, the probing agency sought permission for custodial interrogation of all the six accused. Following this, Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Nishant Garg allowed CBI custody of the accused, including the owner, Abhishek Gupta, till September 4. Others include Deshpal Singh, Tajinder Singh, Harvinder Singh, Sarabjit Singh, and Parvinder Singh, reported PTI.
"Considering the submissions in the application and in particular the scope of investigation in terms of the order dated August 2, 2024 of the 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 news agency quoted the judge as saying.
The CBI also said the occupancy certificate for the building clearly specified that the basement should be used only for parking, storage and other non-commerical purposes. However, Gupta "knowingly" converted the basement into a library.
The CBI custody comes their judicial custody is about to expire.
