DJ owner, operator arrested over death of 7-year-old girl in UP

The police in Balrampur town of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday arrested the owner and operator of a DJ system in connection with the death of a seven-year-old girl who collapsed inside her classroom as a Ganesh idol immersion procession accompanied by loud music passed near her school on Monday (September 21), officials said.

Balrampur Additional Superintendent of Police Vishal Pandey said Mewalal outpost in-charge Shailendra Kumar Yadav was suspended for alleged supervisory lapses, while Kotwali Nagar inspector Santosh Kumar Mishra was served a show-cause notice in connection with alleged police lapses in the incident.

Pandey said Vaishnavi, a Class 2 student, collapsed at Divine Public School around 10:58am on Monday when she attending a class.

“According to the school management, she appeared normal before suddenly falling from her seat. She briefly recovered but collapsed again and did not respond to attempts by teachers to revive her. She was taken to hospital, where doctors declared her dead. The immersion procession was passing near the school around the same time,” he said.

“Iqra Khan, a teacher, told police that vibrations from the loud DJ music could be felt inside the classroom when Vaishnavi’s condition deteriorated,” he added.

Pandey said police registered an FIR at Kotwali Nagar police station on Wednesday on a complaint by school manager Ashish Kumar Upadhyaya and arrested Balaji Hi-Tech DJ owner Chandra Prakash Verma and operator Rampal Saini. He said the two were booked under Sections 105 (culpable homicide) and 223 (disobedience to an order duly promulgated by a public servant) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).