Delhi basement deaths: Civil services aspirants hold spot election to select delegation for talks with officials

PTI, Aug 2, 2024, 8:06 AM IST

Students speak to the police personnel during their protest over the deaths of three civil services aspirants due to drowning at a coaching centre in Old Rajinder Nagar area, in New Delhi. (Credit: PTI photo)

New Delhi: Civil services aspirants enrolled in various institutes on Thursday held a spot election in central Delhi’s coaching hub of Old Rajinder Nagar to select a core committee to represent them in talks with authorities.

However, the final selection was yet to be made amid commotion during the election process.

A 10-15-member panel will be selected as the official delegation for negotiating with the authorities on the students’ demands.

A crowd of students gathered outside Rau’s IAS Study Circle, where three civil services aspirants died after its basement was flooded on July 27, as the hopefuls pitched for their election to the committee.

The audience voted for their preferred candidates by raising their hands.

The candidates vying to become part of the delegation spoke about the issues that they would raise in the meetings.

Their concerns included lopsided safety measures, poor living conditions and exorbitant rents, among others, affecting the daily lives of aspirants.

“Due to the difference of opinion among several groups that have emerged, this election is being held to form an official committee to come to a consensus on the demands and their representation in front of the civic body and other officials,” Amruta, a civil services aspirant from Maharashtra who was part of the voting process, told PTI.

“A lot of students from Delhi University, Jawaharlal Nehru University, coaching hubs such as Mukherjee Nagar and political outfits such as the ABVP (Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad) joined the protest. Every group has its own ideology and demands that led to a confusion. That’s why we decided to create a core committee as the formal delegation that will meet officials and negotiate with the government,” she said.

Amruta said she was voting for those who included safety concerns, poor living standards and high accommodation charges, among others, in their pitches.

The students are protesting against the death of three civil services aspirants in the flooding of the Rau’s IAS Study Circle building basement in the central Delhi coaching hub of Old Rajinder Nagar following torrential rainfall on July 27.

Another student said, “Our concern does not end at justice for the deaths. We want the system to change.” A form was circulated for the students wanting to be nominated for inclusion in the delegation.

The public selected them on how convincing their speech was.

However, the chaos and commotion made it difficult to make the final selection.

Apoorva Bhargav, a faculty from the Eden IAS coaching institute, was seen coordinating and helping the students conduct the exercise.

“The exercise started in the morning. We haven’t been able to select the members yet. Everything is happening democratically,” said civil services aspirant Shubham.

“The students were given forms to nominate themselves and the public will decide who is to be selected,” he added.

Abhishek Choudhary, another aspirant, said the need to hold the election arose because some people were trying to settle political scores and gain popularity through the tragedy.

“No solution was coming out from the meetings with officials. The election will help in forming one representation for all,” he said.

Several political leaders and officials, including AAP’s Sanjay Singh, Atishi and Shelly Oberoi, among others, visited the protest site and asked the students to form a delegation to put forward their demands, the students said.