Janakpuri Pit Left Unattended Without Adequate Barricading: Report Lays Bare Municipality Woes In Biker's Death

New Delhi: A preliminary inquiry into the death of 25-year-old Delhi biker Kamal Dhyani has exposed a ‘catastrophic chain of safety lapses’ by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) and its contractors.

The report, released following the recovery of Dhyani’s body from a 20-foot-deep pit in Janakpuri, confirms that the excavation site was left entirely unsecured, transforming a routine sewer project into a lethal “death trap.”

Dhyani, a private bank employee heading home to celebrate his parents' anniversary, remained trapped in the dark inside the pit with his motorcycle’s headlight still flickering, only to be discovered the following morning by a passerby. 

After a final call to his family at 11:30 PM promising to be home in 15 minutes, he plunged into a freshly dug trench on Joginder Singh Marg.

Youth left for 8 hours

Further details have emerged in the death of Delhi biker revealing that the victim lay at the bottom of a 20-foot-deep sewer trench for nearly eight hours while those responsible allegedly looked on and walked away in Janakpuri.

The inquiry report highlights that mandatory safety protocols were flouted at every level as the excavation, managed by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), was allegedly left completely unguarded, with no barricades or warning signs to alert commuters.

What the eyewitness saw

The final hours of Dhyani paint a grim picture of urban negligence in the capital as an eyewitness reportedly informed a nearby security guard, who alerted a site labourer. 

The labourer then called the sub-contractor, Rajesh Prajapati, at 12:22 am. 

Despite reaching the spot within 20 minutes and seeing Dhyani’s motorcycle headlight still on inside the pit, Prajapati allegedly mounted no rescue effort and failed to call emergency services or the police. 

Dhyani lay in the pit for nearly eight hours before a passer-by finally alerted authorities at 8:00 am the next morning- by which time he had already passed away.

Second arrest made

Delhi Police, meanwhile, have made a second arrest in the Janakpuri pit death case, apprehending Yogesh, a site supervisor employed by sub-contractor Rajesh Prajapati.

Yogesh was tracked down and arrested in Etawah, Uttar Pradesh, and is currently being transit-remanded to Delhi.

Reportedly, both men (Yogesh & Prajapati) allegedly chose to flee the scene rather than alert the police or emergency services. 

Following the incident, Yogesh went into hiding in his hometown before being caught. This follows the arrest of the sub-contractor, Rajesh Prajapati, this past Saturday.

The victim's family, on the other hand, has further alleged that when they approached a laborer near the site during the night to ask if anyone had fallen into the pit, they were told no. 

This claim is currently a key part of the police investigation, as it suggests a deliberate attempt to cover up the accident while Kamal was still trapped inside.

Got No Police Help

Beyond public indifference, the family has also pointed to police inaction as a major factor in the tragedy.

Kamal’s twin brother, Karan Dhyani, alleged that the family spent the night scouring multiple police stations, including Dabri, Vikaspuri, and Sagarpur, but failed to receive any meaningful help. It was only after Karan obtained his brother’s last known location himself that he was able to narrow down the search.

Speaking to reporters, the deceased's brother said on Friday that the victim lost his life to gross carelessness. Holding the authorities accountable, Kamal's father said, "Delhi Jal Board is responsible for the death of my son."

"This is not a tragedy, this is a blatant display of civic negligence by the authorities," said his brother. 

"When I last spoke to him around 11.53, he had said he would return home in another 10 minutes. However, when he did not return till 12.30 am, I got worried given the news of people going missing from the city. When I found his phone unreachable despite several attempts to reach him, I went to the police," he added.

"I went to at least 6 police stations, including Rohini, Mangalpuri, and others. They offered no help to us. They did not even try to reach us upon discovering his dead body. It was only when I dialled his number in the morning that they picked up the call, and said he had an accident," Kamal's brother said.

"If only the police had shown some urgency, taken action on time, and located him sooner, he would have been alive today," he added.

The victim's friend also narrated the harrowing ordeal stating, at least 7 police stations refused to file a complaint, and the cops in return said, "you are not the only boy who is missing. millions of boys like this are missing in Delhi." He added, “All they did was tell us the boy’s name, his bike number, his phone number, and his photo.”

Highlights Peak negligence

The case of Kamal Dhyani bears a chilling resemblance to the recent tragic death of Yuvraj Mehta, a 27-year-old software engineer in Noida's Sector 150 (January 2026). Both incidents highlight a systemic collapse of urban safety and emergency response.

The death highlights peak negligence, where a fatal combination of administrative failure and human coldness turned a survivable accident into a tragedy.

The site itself was a “death trap”, an excavation by the Delhi Jal Board that lacked even the most basic safety protocols like barricades, lighting, or warning signs. 

This systemic failure was compounded by a shocking lack of accountability from the on-site contractors, despite being informed of the fall by witnesses, workers allegedly chose to flee and even misled the searching family rather than mounting a rescue.

When coupled with the reported indifference of local police who failed to provide meaningful aid to his twin brother during the overnight search, the incident reveals a total collapse of the safety net, leaving a young man to die unaided at the bottom of a pit just minutes from his home.

3 suspensions in place

The Delhi government has suspended three DJB engineers, an Executive Engineer, Assistant Engineer, and Junior Engineer, citing "prima facie supervisory negligence." 

Police have arrested the sub-contractor, Rajesh Prajapati, and registered an FIR under Section 105 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (Culpable Homicide).

Delhi minister Ashish Sood told ANI, “All the departments conducted a joint inspection. We have directed the departments, and I am here to ensure that the road runs smoothly with minimum inconvenience to the public. All the officers responsible for the incident have been suspended. The police have also registered an FIR, and an investigation is underway. We will not spare anyone responsible. We want to tell the public that if an incident occurred despite all our efforts, we are also hurt, and the Chief Minister is monitoring the situation.”

What the FIR said

Police have registered an FIR, as the uncovered pit was allegedly dug by the Delhi Jal Board during road work in West Delhi's Janakpuri area.

According to the FIR, no warning signs, reflectors, barricades or proper lighting arrangements were present at the site, and no security guard had been deployed. The FIR states that the pit was left open in the middle of a public road without any safety measures.

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