4 held in connection with death of 2 men while cleaning septic tank in east Delhi: Police

Four persons have been arrested in connection with an incident where two men died allegedly after inhaling toxic gases while cleaning a septic tank of a banquet hall in east Delhi's Ghazipur, police said on Saturday.

Rahul, a housekeeping staff, Aamir Khan, the general manager, and the two directors of the banquet hall -- Johit alias Jimmy Arora and Girish Mahendru -- were arrested on Friday night following interrogation, they added.

Lokesh (35) and Prem Chand (40), residents of Trilokpuri, entered the tank to clean it on Thursday evening and were subsequently found dead inside, the police said, adding that the deceased were not given any protective gear and were offered Rs 3,000 for the work.

''The housekeeping staff of the banquet hall called the two men for cleaning the tank at 7.30 pm and around 10 pm, they were found dead,'' Deputy Commissioner of Police (East) Deepak Yadav said.

Teams from the Fire Department, Delhi Disaster Management Authority and MCD visited the spot, he said, adding that the two men were taken to a hospital, where they were declared brought dead.

The family members of the deceased alleged that the men, who had gone to the banquet hall for catering-related work, were forced to clean the septic tank and not given any protective gear.

A case under section 304A (causing death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and section 9 of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act has been registered, the DCP said, adding that sections of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act have also been invoked against the accused.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)