A 12-year-old girl died on Thursday, a day after she allegedly fell through her bedroom window on the seventh floor of Tower B at Pioneer Park condominium in Gurugram’s Sector 61, the police said. The incident took place around 11.30pm on Wednesday, when the girl allegedly lost balance and fell from the window, which did not have a grille. Residents of the condominium said that the lack of a grille for the windows was a safety hazard and they plan to seek the intervention of the district administration in the matter.
Preet Pal Sangwan, assistant commissioner of police (crime), said one of the residents living on the ground floor heard a sound and rushed out to find the girl lying in a pool of blood. He then rushed the girl to a nearby hospital and informed one of the security guards, who was deployed near the tower, and asked him to inform the residents’ welfare association about the incident.
“The parents were unaware as they were sleeping in another room of the apartment. We are suspecting that the girl must have been playing when she peeped out, lost balance and fell,” Sangwan said.
The police said that the window from which the girl fell was at the same level as her bed. “We did not find any crack in the window. Only a grille was missing. The girl fell through the curtains. It is possible that she was looking out as it was raining,” said Sangwan.
The police said she was alone in the room when the incident took place. The girl was treated at multiple hospitals late Wednesday but succumbed to her injuries, the police said. The body was handed over to the family members after a post-mortem examination on Thursday afternoon and it was taken to Rajasthan for the last rites.
Deepak Mathur, the forensic expert at the Civil Hospital, who conducted the autopsy, said the cause of death was a head injury and excessive bleeding. The girl was a student of class 6 at a prominent school in the city.
“The father of the girl has not pressed any charges, as of now. We are yet to receive a complaint. Hence, no case has been filed, but we have initiated inquest proceedings under Section 174 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) as the family refused to initiate an inquiry in the case and left for their hometown in Jodhpur of Rajasthan,” said Sangwan.
A meeting has been called by the residents on Friday, after which they plan to meet the deputy commissioner and apprise him of the safety hazards in the society.
“We have complained about the state of affairs in our society on numerous occasions, however, no action has been taken. Many residents installed grilles, which is need of the hour, at their own cost. Many residents have now decided to install nets below windows in each tower to avoid such a tragic incident in the future,” said Bhawna Chauhan, one of the residents of Pioneer Park, adding that they plan to file a public interest litigation petition against the builder over security concerns.
Kirti Vij, estate manager of Pioneer Park, employed by the builder, said that he was unaware of the reason behind the incident and despite repeated attempts, refused to comment. Representatives of the developer also refused comment on the incident.
Another resident said that there are several safety and security concerns that they have asked the builder to fix since getting possession in 2015, but to no avail.
“There are issues with the balcony and anyone who moves in has to invest in the infrastructure. We are shocked how the builder got all the clearances without a safety spot check of the society where thousands of lives are at risk,” she said.
An official with the department of town and country planning (DTCP) said, “The occupation certificate is issued to a building after the department checks the actual ground position of the project with sanctioned building plans. The usage of FAR and other such things is checked, and certificates of structural safety and fire safety are also verified.”
