‘Heap of clothes fell on toddler, smothered her’

Sources said Rukhsana’s family was informed about the demolition hours before the drive began. The incident took place at about 8.30 am, when her parents were packing their bags.

Her father, Mohammad Kalim, suddenly spotted her lying under the clothes. He rushed her to a nearby dispensary where she was declared dead on arrival.
Police said the postmortem was conducted at Sanjay Gandhi hospital Saturday. Preliminary reports suggested the girl died due to smothering, said a source. The report also confirmed that the child had bruises on her face and broken ribs, the source added.

Railway authorities claimed they had pasted notices regarding the demolition in the basti, which houses over 500 shanties spread across 3 km near the railway track.

Joint Commissioner of Police Deependra Pathak said, “When the family took her body back home, the drive had not yet begun. It only began at about 11.45 am and went on till 7 pm.” He added that police are yet to receive a formal complaint.

However, sources said a case under Section 304A (death of a person by rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide ) may be registered.