Mira Bhayandar: Nearly eight months after a two-year-old girl drowned in the water tank of an under construction building site in Bhayandar, the police finally registered an offence of negligence against four people including the land owner, builder and architect on Friday.
However, no arrests have been made so far in the case. The tragic mishap was reported from a construction site in Rai village near Bhayandar between 6 pm to 7:30 pm on August 6, 2022.
Child had slipped into partly covered water tank
The deceased toddler who has been identified as-Ritu Deepak Sonar had mysteriously disappeared while playing at the construction site. Her body was later recovered from an underground water tank. Initially, an accidental death report (ADR) was registered at the Bhayandar police station. The toddler had apparently slipped into the partly covered tank which was built at the ground level. The grief-stricken family members alleged negligence on the part of the construction company for not covering the tank. However, it took nearly eight months for the investigating officials to register the FIR.
Refusing to comment on the issue-ACP-Shantilal Jadhav said to contact the senior police inspector. When asked about the delay, senior police inspector-M.P.Patil said, “ After examining the on-site safety measures, the process of verifying the ownership title with the municipal corporation took more time. Moreover, the suspects did not cooperate in the investigations. We have booked four people including the builders and architect of the upcoming building for causing death by negligence.” The accused have been identified as-Pritesh Ramesh Cheddha, Nimesh Shashikant Thakkar, Sandip Mohan Patil ( all builders) and the architect-Basav Raj. However, none of them have been arrested so far. One of the builders is said to be an influential political leader and former municipal corporator of the area. A case under section 304 (a) of the IPC has been registered against the quartet.
