BENGALURU: An eight-year-old boy died, while his parents and two other women sustained injuries when a wall collapsed on their shed after heavy rains on Saturday night. The incident was reported in Ibalur Second Cross near HSR Layout.
The deceased, Maroof, was the son of Babusab and Haseena, who hail from Bangladesh and were staying allegedly illegally, the police said. They came to the city four years ago. Babusab is an electrician, while Haseena works in a garment factory. The shed belonged to Venkataswamy, who had demolished an old building, but had left a wall which collapsed on the shed.
Maroof’s family and others had put up sheds next to the wall and were staying there. The owner had also warned them to vacate as the wall was very weak, but the family did not pay heed.
“As it rained heavily on Saturday evening, the wall collapsed on the shed in the night. Two sheds next to it were damaged while Maroof, his parents, and two other women in an adjacent house got stuck under the debris.
The locals alerted the fire and emergency department personnel, who rushed to the spot and cleared the debris and rescued the four. As the debris fell on Maroof’s head, he lost consciousness and was shifted to a nearby private hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries early Sunday,” the police said.
“The family members are in a shock and we are yet to question them on how they came to India and whether they were staying illegally. We are discussing with our senior officers whether to take up a case of negligence against the site owner for not demolishing the dilapidated wall,” the HSR Layout police said.
On Sunday morning, district-in-charge minister Ramalinga Reddy and Mayor N Shanthakumari visited the spot. Mr. Reddy announced a compensation of Rs 1 lakh to the family of the deceased.
