Gurgaon: Girl injured in power pole fire succumbs to burns, FIR filed against discom

She was among the six children to be electrocuted after coming in contact with live wires of an electricity pole in Sector 56 that caught fire on August 15

A 12-year-old girl from Mahoba, Uttar Pradesh, who had sustained over 90% burns after coming in contact with a
high tension wire, succumbed to her injuries at Delhi’s Safdarjung Hospital on Saturday
evening.

Manju, who succumbed to her burns after a six-day battle for life, had noticed sparks in the switch boxes between the two poles while playing with her friends. (Sanjeev Verma/HT PHOTO)

Her body was handed over to family members after the post mortem examination on Monday and the funeral took place at the Iffco Chowk cremation ground.

An FIR for causing death by negligence was filed against the discom, Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam Limited (DHBVN), at Sector 56 police station on Sunday .

The deceased, Manjoo, was suffering from extreme pain and had even become anaemic, said her father Pappu Kumar. She was among the six children to be electrocuted after coming in contact with live wires of an electricity pole in Sector 56 that caught fire on August 15.

“Doctors tried hard to save her, but failed. She wanted to be back home in Gurgaon. She was a brave girl and had been battling extreme pain. She wanted to return to Gurgaon and play with her friends again,” Kumar said.

“She often asked for water and wanted me to sit by her. My husband, perhaps, sensed that her condition was deteriorating as he asked me to step out. She rolled her eyes towards the ceiling and was finding it difficult to breathe," Asha, mother of the deceased, said.

Sector 56 police registered a case against DHBVN under sections 304-A (causing death by negligence) and 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) of the Indian Penal Code on Sunday. The case was filed on the basis of complaint by the minor’s father.

“The place where the incident took place falls outside the DHBVN’s coverage. A police complaint has been filed against us on the basis of misleading facts. We will present our case in court in time,” KC Aggarwal, superintending engineer, DHBVN, said.

Manju, who succumbed to her burns after a six-day battle for life, had noticed sparks in the switch boxes between the two poles while playing with her friends.

Her family members claimed they did not get any support from government authorities. Four other injured children, who were initially admitted to the civil hospital, were shifted to a private hospital last Thursday.

The district administration had ordered an inquiry into the matter and a fact finding report was filed by a sub-divisional magistrate on Thursday.

“My brothers (who are among the injured) have been discharged from hospital. They should still have been kept under observation. No one (authorities) cared to visit us. We are labourers and need to earn our daily bread. We haven’t been working since Tuesday, as we had to tend to our injured kin. We don’t have enough money in hand, but no one has bothered to help us,” Arjun Kumar, the deceased’s cousin, said.