NEW DELHI: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Thursday issued a notice to Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar, Police Commissioner Sanjay Arora, and Tata Power-Delhi Distribution Limited (DDL) Chairman, seeking a detailed report within two weeks on the death of a UPSC aspirant due to electrocution.
A 26-year-old man preparing for the civil services examination, while residing at a paying guest accommodation in Patel Nagar, central Delhi, allegedly died after being electrocuted by an iron gate on a rainy day.
According to locals, the victim’s flatmates and neighbours reportedly tried to save him but were unsuccessful. He was eventually pulled away from the gate by a police team and taken to the hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
Taking suo motu cognizance of the incident, the NHRC issued notices to the aforementioned officials.
Notably, the iron gate where the aspirant died stood next to an electric pole with a cluster of open wires going to various homes in the area.
According to the NHRC, waterlogging in the area and the flow of electric current from the electric pole to the iron gate prima facie indicate negligence, resulting in the loss of life.
Earlier, on Wednesday, the Delhi government directed the Chief Secretary to submit a report by July 26.
Power Minister Atishi had directed the Chief Secretary to initiate an inquiry into the matter and suggest actions to be taken against those responsible for the tragic loss. The report is to be sent to the office of the undersigned by 5 p.m. on July 26, the minister said.
Meanwhile, Delhi Police are scanning CCTV footage and communicating with power discoms to understand the sequence of events that led to the death of the aspirant after he came in contact with the iron gate of his PG accommodation, which was conducting current during the rain on Monday.
Based on their investigation, police said the victim was on his way back to his PG accommodation from a nearby library when he slipped in the waterlogged street, grabbed the iron gate to regain balance, and was electrocuted.