Delhi Government Suspends Engineers After Motorcyclist Dies in Construction Pit
New Delhi – Three engineers from the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) have been suspended following the death of a 25-year-old motorcyclist who fell into an uncovered construction pit in Janakpuri, west Delhi, on Friday, . The incident has sparked public outrage and prompted a high-level inquiry into safety protocols at the construction site.
The deceased has been identified as Kamal Dhyani, who was reportedly returning home on his motorcycle when the accident occurred around 7:00 am. According to police, Dhyani’s motorcycle was found at the bottom of the pit.
Delhi Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh said the suspensions include an Executive Engineer (AXN), an Assistant Engineer (AE), and a Junior Engineer (JE) linked to the Janakpuri Line Rehabilitation Project area. The engineers have been placed under suspension pending a full investigation.
“The Jal Board had conducted an audit of all safety protocols and issued circulars… The police are looking into the cause of the accident… Any official from the Jal Board found responsible for jeopardising the safety measures will not be spared,” Minister Ashish Sood stated, expressing grief over the incident.
The Delhi Jal Board has established a committee to investigate the circumstances surrounding the accident, with a report expected by the end of the day. The committee’s mandate includes inspecting the accident site, reviewing safety arrangements, checking compliance with norms, and determining responsibility for any lapses.
Family Alleges Police Inaction
Dhyani’s family has accused the Delhi Police of “gross carelessness” and a lack of assistance in locating him after he went missing. His brother stated that he visited six police stations before receiving confirmation of Kamal’s death from a police official who answered his phone in the morning.
“When I last talked to him, he said he would reach home in 10 minutes. When I called him again at 12:30 am, he didn’t pick up. We got worried. We started looking for him. I first went to his office in Rohini, then to the Janakpuri police station. The police gave us his last location in this area. We kept looking for him but couldn’t find him. This is gross carelessness,” the brother reportedly said.
He further recounted checking the pit around 1:30 am but not finding his brother there. The family continued searching throughout the night, visiting multiple police stations without success. They only received confirmation of Kamal’s death when they called his phone, which was answered by a police officer.
A friend of Dhyani also claimed that police initially refused to file a complaint until 11:00 am, but agreed to track his phone, without providing a specific location. Seven people reportedly searched for Dhyani from midnight until 7:00 am without success.
Police Response and Investigation
Deputy Commissioner of Police, West, Sharad Bhaskar, assured that any failure to provide assistance to the family and friends searching for Dhyani would be investigated. He stated that police tracked Kamal’s phone after his brother contacted the Janakpuri Police Station around 2:45 am and a constable joined the family in searching for approximately 2.5 hours.
“A pit was dug for some work of the Delhi Jal Board. Last night, 25-year-old Kamal Dhyani’s bike fell into this pit, and he unfortunately died. We will investigate all stakeholders of this DJB work. The deceased’s brother came to Janakpuri Police Station around 2:45 am, and he informed that his brother had not reached home yet. The police tracked his mobile phone, which was indicating Janakpuri District Park. Head Constable Ramkesh searched for the deceased with the family members for about 2.5 hours, but they couldn’t find him,” Bhaskar said.
Police were alerted to the body at approximately 8:00 am when a woman reported finding a body in a 15-foot deep pit. An investigation is underway to determine whether adequate barricades, warning signs, and lighting were in place at the location, particularly during nighttime hours.
Political Reactions
Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal criticized the BJP-led Delhi government, alleging that Kamal Dhyani’s death was not an accident but a “murder,” and that the government had failed to learn from a similar incident in Noida last month.
“This is not an accident, but murder. The BJP has learned nothing even from the Noida incident. Gross negligence and a non-responsible attitude have now become the hallmark of BJP governments, and the common people are paying the price for it,” Kejriwal reportedly said in a post on X.
Work at the construction site had been ongoing for three months, with the pit being dug on Thursday, according to reports. The incident has raised serious questions about on-site safety measures and supervision.
