Delhi: Main contractor held in Janakpuri pit death case after manhunt

Delhi Police arrested contractor Himanshu Gupta after a biker's death in an uncovered excavation pit in Janakpuri, highlighting safety negligence.

The Delhi Police on Tuesday arrested contractor Himanshu Gupta from Rajasthan, more than a month after a 25-year-old biker was killed after falling into an uncovered excavation pit dug for sewer work in Janakpuri, west Delhi. Police said Gupta was apprehended from Udaipur and brought to Delhi for further questioning in the case.

Spot where a biker lost his life after falling into an uncovered pit at an under-construction Delhi Jal Board pipeline site on Professor Joginder Singh Marg, Janakpuri on Sunday. (Arvind Yadav/HT Photo)

On February 5, Kamal Dhyani, a resident of Palam Village, plunged into a deep pit on the intervening night of February 5 and 6 on a public road in Janakpuri. The excavation had been carried out to rehabilitate sewer lines under a project of the Delhi Jal Board (DJB). The victim was pulled out of the pit by fire brigade personnel and taken to Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead.

Investigators found that the site lacked basic safety arrangements such as barricades, blinkers, warning signage and adequate lighting — measures mandated under the contract and traffic police conditions for road work.

Earlier, the Delhi High Court had refused to grant anticipatory bail to Gupta and another contractor, Kavish Gupta, linked to the project, observing that the incident was a “preventable accident” caused by the absence of essential safety measures. The court noted that public roads cannot be allowed to become “death traps” due to negligence during contractual work.