Delhi biker death: Court grants directors of private firm protection from arrest

The judge directed both accused to join the probe by Wednesday at 10am and to appear before the investigating officer (IO) as and when required.

A Delhi court on Tuesday granted interim protection from arrest to the two directors of a private company hired by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) to dig the sewer pit in west Delhi’s Janakpuri, in which a 25-year-old man died after falling into it along with his motorcycle on Friday.

Dhyani died after falling into an open excavation pit allegedly left unsecured by the contractor engaged by DJB. (Vipin Kumar/Hindustan Times)

The order was passed by additional sessions judge Harleen Singh of the Dwarka courts on anticipatory bail applications filed by the accused, Himanshu Gupta and his brother Kavish Gupta. While directing the Delhi Police to not take any coercive action against the two till February 18, the next date of hearing, the court made the protection conditional on their cooperation with the investigation.

The judge directed both accused to join the probe by Wednesday at 10am and to appear before the investigating officer (IO) as and when required.

The case was registered at Janakpuri police station in connection with the death of Kamal Dhyani, a telecaller working with a private bank in Rohini. Dhyani died after falling into an open excavation pit allegedly left unsecured by the contractor engaged by DJB.

During the hearing, counsels appearing for the Gupta brothers told the court that their clients had received a notice to join the investigation on February 9 but were unable to do so due to poor health. The defence assured the court that the accused were willing to cooperate and would join the investigation whenever required. The submissions were not opposed by the state prosecutor.

Deputy commissioner of police (west) Sharad Bhaskar Darade said the police would comply with the directions. “We will follow the court’s directions and wait for Himanshu Gupta and Kavish Gupta to join the investigation tomorrow,” he said.

On Monday, Delhi Police had issued non-bailable warrants and look-out circulars (LOCs) against both Himanshu and Kavish Gupta, stating that they had been absconding since the incident. LOCs were issued last week after police registered a case of culpable homicide and preliminary investigations indicated that the two had fled their residence to evade arrest.

The incident occurred at around 12.15am on Friday, when Dhyani fell into a 4.5-foot-deep pit during his nearly 20-km commute home to Kailashpuri in Palam Colony from his workplace in Rohini. Police investigations have revealed that he remained trapped in the pit for at least eight hours, and that at least six people, including Himanshu Gupta, were allegedly aware of the incident but failed to inform the authorities.

While Dhyani’s autopsy report had not been officially released on Tuesday, a person briefed on its findings said it suggested that the cause of death was asphyxiation due to compression of the chest and soil entering the mouth and nostrils. The report reportedly indicates that the death appears to be accidental, but notes that such a conclusion can only be confirmed after a detailed investigation.