Police exhume body of 7-yr-old who drowned at Delhi water park, probe widens

The child, identified as Mohammad Asad, a resident of Nehru Vihar, had visited the park on Friday with his uncle and cousins

Three days after a seven-year-old boy drowned at a water park on Delhi’s GT Karnal Road, the Delhi Police on Monday said they exhumed the body for an autopsy to ascertain cause of death and registered a case of causing death by negligence against “Just Chill Water Park”.

He drowned while swimming in one of the pools, but no police complaint was filed immediately. His family instead took him to a nursing home in Sonipat, Haryana, where he was declared dead. (Representational image)

The child, identified as Mohammad Asad, a resident of Nehru Vihar, had visited the park on Friday with his uncle and cousins. He drowned while swimming in one of the pools, but no police complaint was filed immediately. His family instead took him to a nursing home in Sonipat, Haryana, where he was declared dead. The body was then buried the same day.

Police said they received a complaint about the incident only on Saturday, following which a formal investigation was launched. “We received a complaint from the dead boy’s uncle. The child’s body was buried after he was declared dead at Param Nursing Home in Sonipat. On Saturday, the family approached us with the complaint,” said deputy commissioner of police (outer north) Hareshwar Swami.

A case of causing death by negligence of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita has been registered against the water park. Officials from Just Chill have not yet responded to requests for comment on the matter.

On Monday, police said they secured court permission to exhume the boy’s body for a post-mortem examination. A board of doctors will now determine the exact cause of death, a senior officer said.

Investigators have also launched a wider probe into the park’s operations. The owner and manager of Just Chill Water Park have been asked to submit CCTV footage and other relevant records. Police are also verifying whether a lifeguard was posted near the pool at the time of the incident.

Meanwhile, Asad’s mother, Ruksana Ahmed, alleged that officials from the water park had attempted to bribe the family into silence. “They offered me ₹2 lakh and told me to withdraw the FIR. I don’t want compensation. I just want the truth. I don’t want any other child to face the fate of my child in that pool. The water park is responsible for my child’s death. Why didn’t anyone save my child?” she said.

“I have been running from the hospital to the police station to the park, all alone. They still haven’t shown me the CCTV footage of the pool,” she said.

Police said all allegations made by the family, including attempted bribery and destruction of evidence, are being examined as part of the ongoing probe.