In India's capital, Delhi, three students preparing for the UPSC exam died on Saturday (July 27) after the basement of their coaching institute got flooded. The incident occurred at RAU's IAS Coaching Center in Old Rajinder Nagar. Two female students and one male student were trapped in the basement for over four hours. When rescue attempts were finally made, it was too late, and all three had passed away. This tragic event has sparked outrage among the students, who protested against the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), the local MLA, and councilors.
The Delhi Police have arrested the owner and coordinator of RAU's IAS Study Circle. Speaking to news agency ANI, a student said, 'Both the MCD and the coaching institute are responsible and should be held accountable together.' Another student told ANI that around 20-25 students were trapped in the coaching center’s basement. Most managed to escape on their own, but some remained stuck inside. Students of RAU's IAS mentioned that no representative from the Delhi government came to meet them or address the issue.
A video circulating on social media shows the poor condition of Old Rajinder Nagar after a normal rainfall, captured right in front of the RAU's IAS Study Circle. Water can be seen everywhere, almost as deep as waist level on the roads, submerging motorcycles and scooters. The viral video shows the entry gate of RAU's IAS Coaching Center closed, with water reaching halfway up the iron gate. It is reported that a staff member was leaving for home, which led to the opening of the entry gate. As soon as the gate was opened, water from the street rushed into the basement of the coaching center with great force, filling the 12-feet deep basement within minutes and trapping the students inside. RAU's IAS Study Circle had set up their library in the basement, which is why so many students were present in the flooded area.
Following the incident, Delhi Mayor Dr. Shelly Oberoi instructed the MCD Commissioner to take strict action against all coaching centers operating in basements against building regulations and norms, which fall under MCD jurisdiction. She emphasized that an immediate investigation has begun to determine if any MCD officials are responsible for the tragedy. If found guilty, the strictest action will be taken against them.
Verbal Clash Between AAP and BJP Over Incident
The unfortunate event in the national capital has ignited a war of words between the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Targeting AAP, Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva said, 'What happened was not an accident but murder. How was a library running in the basement? What happened to the previous investigation? These students are the future of our country... Delhi's ministers don’t have the courage to visit the site (of the incident). You (Delhi government) are involved in this corruption. People have been repeatedly asking for the drains to be cleaned, what were you doing? AAP government has ruined the entire city. What was their (the students') fault? Just that they came to Delhi to study?'
BJP Responsible for Poor Drainage System: AAP
Responding to BJP's accusations, AAP MLA Durgesh Pathak said, 'Delhi's drainage system has collapsed because BJP ruled the municipal corporation for 15 years. We have been here for only a year and have been working on the drainage. However, I don’t want to get into blame games; I want a thorough investigation, and strict action should be taken against whoever is responsible.' Meanwhile, Delhi Congress stated that the AAP government has completely failed. Delhi Congress President Devendra Yadav said, 'Who gave permission to run an institution in the basement? We need to focus on this. Kejriwal constantly writes letters to show that he is the Chief Minister, but we need to look at the condition of Delhi... his ministers are doing nothing.'
