A magistrate enquiry has been ordered and an FIR lodged against the man running a Sanskrit gurukul in Vrindavan after four students died inside a 12-foot-deep underground water tank on Tuesday night, allegedly after entering it to clean the tank following a foul smell from the stored water.
Initially, water was being removed with a bucket, but later a student was asked to enter the tank. When he did not respond, others went inside one after another. Four died while one was rescued.
Sharma, a resident of Madhya Pradesh, was arrested after a case was registered under Section 105 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (culpable homicide not amounting to murder). Around 80 students were staying at the gurukulam, where they studied Sanskrit and rituals.
Mathura SSP Shlok Kumar said an FIR was lodged at Vrindavan police station against Ashish Kumar Sharma, who was running the Panini Sanskrit Gurukulam. Police said students had been asked to clean the underground water tank. The exact cause of the deaths was being investigated, police said.
Family members of the deceased reached Vrindavan on Wednesday and were handed over the bodies after completion of the required legal formalities.
