Dwarka golf course drowning: Kin of victims allege foul play

Three boys, aged 8 and 11, drowned in a Dwarka golf course pond. Families suspect foul play; police are investigating and haven't registered an FIR yet.

New Delhi: A day after the bodies of three minor boys were recovered from a pond at the DDA golf course in Dwarka Sector 24, police said an enquiry is ongoing and an FIR is yet to be registered.

While police suspect the boys entered the pond to swim and drowned, the victims’ family members on Friday alleged foul play (Sanjeev Verma/ HT)

The boys, identified as two brothers, aged 8 and 11, and their 11-year-old friend, went missing on Wednesday afternoon. Their bodies were found in the pond around 7am on Thursday.

While police suspect the boys entered the pond to swim and drowned, the victims’ family members alleged foul play on Friday. At the Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, they claimed the boys had never been to the golf course before, and “must have been taken” by someone or gone with someone else.

A senior police officer in the western range said: “Inquest proceedings have been initiated and the matter is being probed under the SHO of Sector 23 Dwarka police station. An FIR will be registered if some criminal negligence is found. Staffers of the golf course are being questioned.”

Meena Jaiswal, mother of the two brothers who drowned, told HT: “I have lost both my sons. And the police informed us almost after 24 hours. Who am I supposed to believe? My children went to school and were very studious. They did not even know how to swim and never wandered at night. Why would they randomly enter a golf course? Police are not even showing us the CCTV of them entering the premises. What happened on Wednesday? Did they enter at night or in the evening? I last saw them around 2-3pm. They came back from school and asked for food. It was a regular day. They then said they are stepping out to play cricket.”

The boys’ father, Arvind Jaiswal, said: “We knew they would be with their friend and assumed the trio would stay at someplace. We should have called the police earlier. But now, they are not helping us. I am sure someone took my sons there. Why would three kids jump in a pond at night?”

Arvind works at construction sites while Meena is a domestic help.

Kaalu, the father of the third boy, said: “I last saw my son on Wednesday evening with his friends. I thought he would be staying with them. My son had just turned 11 last week. He helped me sell balloons and flags. I can’t believe he is gone. He had never gone to the golf course. In fact, nobody around us has even tried entering the golf course. Why would he go all of a sudden at night? Police must investigate the incident.”

Meanwhile, police said the children’s clothes were found outside the pond, and it is suspected that they entered the pond around 8-9pm to swim and accidentally drowned.

DCP (Dwarka) Kushal Pal Singh did not respond to queries.

On Thursday, DDA released a statement that a three-member committee under the DDA director had been constituted to investigate the incident and submit a report within a week. “Strict action, as warranted, will be taken, based on the findings of the enquiry.” it said.