Coaching centre deaths: Students hope SC intervention will resolve grievances

New Delhi: Civil services aspirants who have been protesting over the deaths of three students in the flooded basement of a coaching centre, welcomed the apex court's decision to take cognisance of the matter, hoping their grievances would be resolved soon.

The Supreme Court on Monday took suo motu cognisance of the deaths of Shreya Yadav, Tanya Soni, and Nevin Dalvin in the basement of a coaching centre in the city's Old Rajinder Nagar area and sought responses from the Centre and the Delhi government. Many civil services aspirants who are enrolled in various coaching institutes have been protesting since the incident, demanding justice for the victims and improved safety measures at coaching centres that pose a threat to their lives.

  "All the students welcome this intervention by the Supreme Court. Although this suo motu cognisance should have come earlier," Ravish Anand, a UPSC aspirant, told PTI Videos.

"This matter is no longer about coaching centres or the MCD, it is about fundamental rights now. Students come here to study but end up losing their lives. This is pure negligence by the authorities and the coaching centres," Anand said.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan called the recent incident in the national capital an eye-opener for all.

Pankaj, a student, told PTI that technically this is the job of the executive, not of the judiciary but when the executive failed to fulfil its duties, the Supreme Court had to step in.       "We humbly welcome the Supreme Court's intervention and are very hopeful that it will hold the authorities accountable and resolve our grievances as soon as possible," he added.       The Supreme Court on Monday noted that "these places (coaching centres) have become death chambers".

"Coaching institutes can operate online unless there is full compliance with the safety norms and basic norms for a dignified life. Coaching centres are playing with the lives of aspirants who come from different parts of the country," the apex court said.

A number of students on Sunday took out a candle march and sat in front of the coaching centre building to remember their friends who lost their lives.