Family of man who died falling from 14th floor of Oberoi project, await compensation

Salauddin (25), the sole earning member of his family, had five dependents — his 105-year-old grandmother, his aged parents and two younger brothers. He was working as a fitter and had fallen off the 14th floor window of Oberoi Eternia, a high-rise building in Mulund on January 13, and died while under treatment on January 14.

Mumbai: Over a month after Azizullah Salauddin, a labourer working on a construction project by the Oberoi Group in Mulund, lost his life in an accident on the site, his family on Tuesday said that they are yet to receive any compensation from the company.

Family of man who died falling from 14th floor of Oberoi project, await compensation

Salauddin (25), the sole earning member of his family, had five dependents — his 105-year-old grandmother, his aged parents and two younger brothers. He was working as a fitter and had fallen off the 14th floor window of Oberoi Eternia, a high-rise building in Mulund on January 13, and died while under treatment on January 14.

Salauddin’s cousin brother M N Shaikh said that since his death, he has been writing to the Oberoi Group seeking compensation so that his family’s woes could be eased, but to no avail.

“All of my correspondence has gone unheeded so far. Even his salary for the months of December and January was pending and it was only cleared on February 20, after repeated follow-ups,” Shaikh said.

He added that Salauddin’s father, who is 65-years-old, is struggling to eke out a living as a farmer in Basti district, Uttar Pradesh, while his mother, also a senior citizen, is struggling with multiple health issues.

“The police, when they visited the site of the accident, had found clear evidence of negligence with regard to safety of the workers,” Shaikh said.

The Mulund police had on January 21 registered an FIR against the builder as well as the contractor handling the project, charging them with causing death due to negligence under the Indian Penal Code. No arrests have been made in the case yet.

When the Oberoi Group was contacted by HT for a comment, the company spokesperson said that they would only be able to give a comment on Friday as the concerned officials were travelling.