UPSC aspirants' deaths: Coaching centre’s owner ‘knowingly’ used basement for commercial purpose without permission, says CBI

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said that the owner of Rau’s IAS study circle coaching institute where three UPSC aspirants drowned due to waterlogging in old Rajinder Nagar “knowingly” used the basement for commercial purpose. The agency added that the owner was aware of the contravention of the usage approved by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.  

In its submission to the special court, the CBI has said that its probe has also shown that the institute did not have a fire safety certificate for nearly one year after the issue was flagged before the Delhi High Court in 2023.  

The agency on August 31 sought special court’s permission for “custodial interrogation” of coaching institute owner Abhishek Gupta and other accused Deshpal Singh, Harvinder Singh, Parvinder Singh, Sarabjeet Singh and Tajinder Singh who have been in judicial custody. 

Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Nishant Garg on Saturday sent all six to CBI custody till September 4. 

The MCD had issued a show cause notice to the owner of Rau’s IAS study circle also to comply with the masterplan-2021. 

What CBI probe found 

The CBI investigation has found that the MCD had given occupancy certificate to the building on August 9, 2021, “explicitly” stating that the basement can only be used for staircase, lift, lobby, toilet, parking, household storage and car lift. 

The owner of the coaching institute Abhishek Gupta entered into a lease agreement with the co-owners of the building on January 5, 2022, taking the building on lease for nine years at Rs four lakh per month rent, the CBI has alleged. 

The basement of the building was allegedly being used for library and examination hall, having 80-90 seating capacity. Students used to sit throughout the day for studies and taking tests, the agency found. 

The CBI also found that Old Rajinder Nagar used to get flooded even after moderate rains, being a low-lying area, and the rainwater used to enter in the premises. In order to block the water from entering, steel gates were used in the building. 

Citing the postmortem report, the CBI has said that the three UPSC aspirants died during the flooding on July 27 due to asphyxia caused by ante-mortem drowning. 

The agency said its investigation revealed that on July 27 at about 6.30 pm, several students were studying in the library located in the basement of the coaching institute amid heavy rainfall outside. 

“The rainwater entered suddenly in the ground floor due to sudden fall of sliding gates of the main building and subsequently entered into the basement resulting in flooding of the same,” it had said earlier. 

CBI said that few students survived but three students namely Shreya Yadav, Tanya Soni and Nevin Dalvin died.    

A case has been filed under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Section 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), was transferred from the Delhi Police to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) by the high court on August 2.  

The accused were produced before the court on expiry of their judicial custody granted earlier in the case. 

(With inputs from PTI)