‘Our brother was made to clean the sewer, it was not his job’: Kin of sweeper who died in Outer Delhi

Ashok’s brother at the SGM hospital mortuary, Saturday. (Express Photo by Gajendra Yadav)

The youngest of three brothers, Chandilya worked in various pockets around Loknayak Puram. Speaking to The Indian Express at the Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital (SGM) mortuary, where the family was waiting to receive the body, Chandilya’s elder brother Rakesh Kumar said: “My friend called at 2 pm yesterday and told me Rohit had died while cleaning a sewer. I told him that he was mistaken, as my brother does not clean sewers for a living; he was a sweeper… I kept calling my brother’s phone, but he did not pick up. His death was confirmed in the evening, when we reached his home in Bakkarwala.”

His cousin, Poonam, alleged: “Our brother was asked to enter the sewer without any safety equipment. Usne kapde jo pehne the woh bhi utaar ke gaya hain. Action should be taken against whoever is responsible for this incident.”

Rohit is survived by his wife and three-year-old son, added his second brother, Deepak Kumar. “He moved to Bakkarwala five years ago after he got married and was living on rent in a JJ colony.”

Also at the mortuary was Ashok’s family. According to his elder brother Ajay Kumar (40), it was a relative who broke the news of his death on Friday evening. “A relative called us around 4.30-5 pm yesterday, saying my brother was last seen near a sewer which was being cleaned in Loknayak Puram and can’t be found now. Some of our family members rushed from Pelpa Badli village in Jhajjar to the spot.”

Ashok is survived by his wife and two children, he said. He had studied till Class X from a government school in the village and had been working as a guard for several years, Kumar added.

Police had found during inquiry that due to a block in the sewer, Rohit removed the manhole cover and entered inside but fell unconscious due to poisonous gases. Ashok, who went to rescue him, also lost consciousness. Two other people, including a plumber, tried to rescue them, but became uneasy. They were saved by residents, but Ashok and Rohit were too deep inside to reach. While calls were made to the Delhi Fire Services, police arranged a JCB and hammer to break the ground around the manhole. This was done by the time a DFS vehicle arrived around 5 pm. Their bodies were then taken out.

Police have registered a case under IPC section 304A (causing death by negligence). “Investigation is at a nascent stage, and therefore it is difficult to pinpoint the culprit. The bodies of the deceased have been handed over to their families after post-mortem. The autopsy report has not been received yet,” police sources said.