A mason working on the new Parliament building site died last week, leading to inquest proceedings into the unnatural death, the Delhi Police said on Tuesday.
The police as well as a spokesperson for Tata Projects Limited, which is the Central Public Works Department’s (CPWD) contractor for the project, told The Hindu that a worker, Gya Singh, was found unconscious in a toilet on site and declared dead when taken to a nearby hospital. The Tata Projects spokesperson said the incident occurred late on July 13 and that the worker suffered from heart ailment. The CPWD spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP, New Delhi) Amrutha Guguloth said the 49-year-old man from Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri district had been working as a mason with Balaji Construction on the new Parliament building for the past one year. She said the information was lodged on July 14 at Parliament Street Police Station.
“On enquiry it was revealed that on that day, the deceased was working in day shift from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. At about 6 p.m., he went to the toilet but did not return back till 8 p.m. Later, he was found unconscious in a toilet and taken to RML Hospital…Proceeding under Section 174 of Criminal Procedure Code was initiated as nothing suspicious came to notice,” Ms. Guguloth said.
Under Section 174 of the CrPC, the police are supposed to intimate the nearest executive magistrate for inquest proceedings when they receive information regarding a suicide, or killing by “another or by an animal or by machinery or by accident”, among others.
The DCP said that "no foul play" was revealed in the incident and claimed that the worker died an unnatural death. Hence, no First Information Report (FIR) has been lodged in the case, the DCP said. “We are not sure if he died due to heart ailment as we don’t have the medical report,” she said.
When asked about the circumstances surrounding the death, the Tata Projects spokesperson said in a written response: “This incident did not occur due to any safety-related issues, since the worker was diagnosed with heart-related ailment. The incident occurred outside the construction zone and worker was found inside the toilet area. Our medical staff immediately provided first-aid to the ailing worker upon knowing his condition. Thereafter, the ailing worker was shifted to the nearby hospital for further treatment.”
The Tata spokesperson said the incident was “purely a natural medical case” and that the worker was discovered by other workers on the site.
“As part of our company’s policies to support workers, we are in continuous touch with the victim’s family to extend all support through workmen insurance policy and other initiatives,” the Tata spokesperson said.
Construction on the new Parliament building next to the existing one began in January 2021, as the first of the Central Vista redevelopment projects to start. The project was estimated to cost ₹971 crore when it began. The government’s deadline for the project is November this year, in time for the Winter Session of Parliament to be held in the new building. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had unveiled the national emblem installed on top of the new Parliament building on July 11.
