Open manhole death: Contractor on the run, three workers detained
CCTV shows no safety barricades or warning signs at civic worksite; police launch hunt for contractor
Relatives of the deceased --Aslam Isak Shaikh (55), a resident of Yadav Nagar in Sakinaka, was returning home from work when he allegedly slipped into the uncovered manhole. (Express Photo by Sankhadeep Banerjee)
The Sakinaka police on Friday registered an FIR against a contractor and three labourers after a 55-year-old man died after falling into an open manhole on Khairani Road during heavy rain. While the three labourers have been detained for questioning, police have launched a search for the contractor.
The case has been registered under Sections 106(1) (causing death by a rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
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Senior Inspector Avinash Mandle of the Sakinaka police station said the contractor was absconding and multiple police teams had been deployed to trace him. He added that more persons could be named as the investigation progresses.
The deceased, identified as Aslam Isak Shaikh (55), a resident of Yadav Nagar in Sakinaka, was returning home from work on Wednesday evening when he allegedly slipped into the uncovered manhole.
CCTV footage from a nearby hotel, accessed by the police, purportedly shows civic workers carrying out work at the site without installing barricades or warning signs, in violation of prescribed safety norms. Shaikh was seen talking on his mobile phone moments before the accident.
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Workers at the site immediately lowered a ladder into the manhole in an attempt to rescue him, but strong water currents hampered the search. Only his umbrella and slippers were initially recovered.
A joint search operation by the Mumbai Fire Brigade and other emergency agencies later traced Shaikh’s body in a stormwater drain near SJ Studio in Sakinaka at around 1 pm on Thursday. He was taken to Rajawadi Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
The incident comes less than 48 hours after another rain-related tragedy in Mumbai, in which an 11-year-old boy was killed after a tree collapsed on a school bus in Chembur, raising fresh concerns over civic safety during the monsoon.
Relatives of the deceased --Aslam Isak Shaikh (55), a resident of Yadav Nagar in Sakinaka, was returning home from work when he allegedly slipped into the uncovered manhole. (Express Photo by Sankhadeep Banerjee) 
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