New Delhi: The death of 25-year-old banking telecaller Kamal Dhyan, who fell into a 15- to 20-feet deep pit and died. Delhi Jal Board (DJB), revealed a sequence of events in which at least five people either saw him in the pit or knew about the incident, but failed to help or inform the police for more than eight hours after the incident.
As investigators reconstructed the sequence of events, they came across another CCTV footage that added another troubling layer to the case. Footage shows workers removing barricades after the accident. (Sanchu Khanna/HT Photo)when sub-contractoridentified as Rajesh Kumar Prajapati, 47, was arrested on Saturday and booked for culpable homicide, while the main contractor and laborer, identified by his single name Yogesh, were absconding.
Also read: Delhi: 112 caller said bystanders were taking picturesAn official familiar with the investigation, who did not wish to be named, said they were trying to trace the contractor, who is currently absconding. “The main contractor did not physically visit the site. But he did not even inform the police or other agencies about the accident. Apart from the watchman, three other persons were directly responsible for avoiding the accident. However, it was their negligence in not securing the sides of the deep pit and properly lighting and guarding the area that led to the death of the truck driver.”
A passerby, a nearby security guard, a worker, the project’s subcontractor and the main contractor were all alerted to the incident when the passerby spotted the biker falling into the pit around 12.15pm. However, the police were informed only at around 8.03 am, painting a picture of apathy.
Also read: Janakpuri Tragedy: Orders issued by Delhi Jal Board ignored after Noida techie’s deathA police team has been sent to Yogesh’s hometown Uttar PradeshOn its way to Etawah and the main contractor, Himanshu Gupta, who was out of Delhi till Saturday evening, Joint Commissioner of Police (Western Range) Jatin Narwal said the role of security guard Deshraaj was also being investigated.
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Dhiani, a resident of Kailashpuri in Palam Colony, was returning home on his TVS Apache motorcycle from Rohini, where he worked as an assistant manager at a call center run by HDFC Bank, when he fell into the pothole around 12.15 pm on Friday. His body was lying in the pit along with his motorcycle till 8 am.
The guard failed to call the police despite informing the driver of the vehicle, police said. “However, the guard did not inform the police. He went to the makeshift tent and informed laborer Yogesh about the incident. He and Yogesh looked inside the hole and saw a motorcycle with headlights on and a man lying there. The guard went back to his duty station,” said a second investigator, citing video footage from the spot CCTV camera.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) Sharad Bhaskar said that instead of informing the police, Yogesh contacted his employer Rajesh Kumar Prajapati over phone at 12.22 pm and Prajapati reached the spot in his car from his house in Tri Nagar about 20 minutes later.
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“Prajapati also saw the victim and his motorcycle lying in the pit. However, neither he nor Yogesh informed the police about the incident. Yogesh fled the area while Prajapati returned home,” Bhaskar said.
Instead of calling for medical help, Prajapati allegedly reported the incident to the main contractor Himanshu Gupta over phone and this was confirmed by analyzing the call records of the two men, said a third official, who did not want to be named. “We will ask Gupta and Yogesh why they did not inform the police despite being informed about the accident,” the officer added.
As investigators reconstructed the sequence of events, they came across another CCTV footage that added another troubling layer to the case. Footage shows workers removing barricades after the accident. The two barricades were initially placed far apart, leaving a wide gap in an active excavation site, police said. “We can charge him and others with tampering with evidence,” the second officer said.
