UPSC aspirants’ death in Delhi: No justification for further probe, CBI tells Delhi court
The petition said that the “CBI had not seized the sanctioned building plan for educational occupancy” and had not investigated the case from all angles as per directions of the Delhi High Court.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday told a Delhi court that no further probe is required in the case related to the death of three IAS aspirants who drowned in the flooded basement of Rau’s IAS coaching centre in Old Rajinder Nagar in July 2024, highlighting that the even the role of Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and Delhi Fire Service (DFS) officials in conspiracy with the owner of institute had also come to the fore.
The probe agency made these submissions after a protest petition was filed by Advocate Abhijit Anand, who represented Dalvin Suresh, father of one of the deceased, Nevin Dalvin. The CBI told the court that the role of MCD and Delhi Fire Service officials in conspiracy with the owner of the institute and another staff member had also surfaced, thereby negating the justification for further probe.
“There is no justification for any further investigation as all material evidence has been collected and examined from all relevant angles,” the CBI said.
In the protest petition, Anand had said that the CBI had not “conducted a free and fair investigation,” alleging that the probe was conducted in a “sham and casual manner.”
The petition said that the “CBI had not seized the sanctioned building plan for educational occupancy” and had not investigated the case from all angles as per directions of the Delhi High Court. “CBI has not even investigated the aspect of the basement having a lift-lobby and car-lift as per the occupancy-cum-completion certificate,” it said.
According to the chargesheet filed by the CBI, under enforcement action, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) sealed 52 basements between August 4 and September 4, 2024, including those used by coaching centres, libraries, and private offices.
In its submissions, the CBI said that they filed the supplementary chargesheet last April against Abhishek Gupta, partner of M/s Rau’s IAS Study Circle; Arnav Kumar Dutta, Junior Engineer, MCD, Karol Bagh Zone; Udai Vir Singh, Assistant Divisional Officer (ADO), South West Division, Fire Station Dwarka Sector 6; Vedpal, Divisional Officer, South West Division, Shankar Road Fire Station; and Ashok Narang, Consultant, M/s Rau’s IAS Study Circle under sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Nirbhay Thakur is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express who primarily covers district courts in Delhi and has reported on the trials of many high-profile cases since 2023.
Professional Background
Education: Nirbhay is an economics graduate from Delhi University.
Beats: His reporting spans the trial courts, and he occasionally interviews ambassadors and has a keen interest in doing data stories.
Specializations: He has a specific interest in data stories related to courts.
Core Strength: Nirbhay is known for tracking long-running legal sagas and providing meticulous updates on high-profile criminal trials.
Recent notable articles
In 2025, he has written long form articles and two investigations. Along with breaking many court stories, he has also done various exclusive stories.
1) A long form on Surender Koli, accused in the Nithari serial killings of 2006. He was acquitted after spending 2 decades in jail. was a branded man. Deemed the “cannibal" who allegedly lured children to his employer’s house in Noida, murdered them, and “ate their flesh” – his actions cited were cited as evidence of human depravity at its worst. However, the SC acquitted him finding various lapses in the investigation. The Indian Express spoke to his lawyers and traced the 2 decades journey.
2) For decades, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has been at the forefront of the Government’s national rankings, placed at No. 2 over the past two years alone. It has also been the crucible of campus activism, its protests often spilling into national debates, its student leaders going on to become the faces and voices of political parties of all hues and thoughts. The Indian Express looked at all court cases spanning over two decades and did an investigation.
3) Investigation on the 700 Delhi riots cases. The Indian Express found that in 17 of 93 acquittals (which amounted to 85% of the decided cases) in Delhi riots cases, courts red-flag ‘fabricated’ evidence and pulled up the police.
Signature Style
Nirbhay’s writing is characterized by its procedural depth. He excels at summarizing 400-page chargesheets and complex court orders into digestible news for the general public.
X (Twitter): @Nirbhaya99 ... Read More
The most recent find in Mumbai Crime Branch’s investigation into the recent firing at filmmaker Rohit Shetty’s Juhu residence has revealed an interesting connection to the 2024 murder of politician Baba Siddique. Last Thursday, the Anti-Extortion Cell of Mumbai Crime Branch arrested a fifth accused in connection with the Shetty case, who’s also linked with the Siddique case.
