Mumbai: Nearly a month after a 60-year-old man died after falling into an uncovered storm-water drain manhole in Sakinaka during heavy rain, Congress group leader in the BMC Ashraf Azmi on Friday demanded that the civic administration immediately make public the inquiry report into the incident and fix accountability.Aslam Isak Shaikh died on July 2 after falling into an open manhole on Khairani Road in Sakinaka amid heavy rainfall. The incident had triggered outrage, following which the BMC suspended four officials concerned, blacklisted the contractor and ordered an inquiry.Azmi alleged that despite these announcements, the inquiry report had not been made public even after nearly a month.“This was not a natural calamity but a preventable tragedy caused by administrative negligence. Mumbaikars have a right to know who has been held accountable and what action has been taken,” Azmi said.He questioned whether criminal proceedings had been initiated against those responsible and whether Shaikh’s family had received adequate compensation.The Congress corporator demanded that the inquiry report be released without delay, strict action be taken against all officials and contractors found responsible, and concrete measures be implemented to prevent similar incidents during the monsoon.The July 2 incident had renewed concerns over the safety of stormwater drain infrastructure during heavy rain. At the time, the BMC had maintained that safety nets had been installed on the majority of the city’s manholes but ordered a departmental inquiry into the Sakinaka incident after preliminary findings pointed to lapses.
