Mumbai: A motorcycle-borne man allegedly fell into an open manhole near Ulwe sector 20 and died due to an ensuing explosion on Tuesday.
The victim, Mohan Rathod (29), sustained major burn injuries to which he succumbed while he was being taken to the hospital.
The NRI police has registered a case against a City and Industrial Development Corpo-ration (Cidco) contractor.
According to police officers, Rathod was working as a team manager in a private company in Vashi. His wife is a police inspector in the Belapur commissioner’s office.
A police officer said, “Rathod was riding home around 12.15 am. He could not see the manhole. After his bike fell into it, the vehicle’s petrol tank leaked and caught fire. He could not run because of his injured leg and he was subsequently immolated.”
Another police officer said, “A member of his society, Harsh Upadhyay, happened to be passing by and saw Rathod aflame. Upadhyay immediately called other people and tried to extinguish the fire. He also called the police and ambulance but by the time we took Mohan to the hospital he had succumbed to his injuries.”
The officer added, “ CIDCO contractors had dug up the manhole for cleaning work and didn’t put up posters or a sign board warning motorists. We have registered a case under culpable homicide not amounting to murder against the CIDCO contractor. We are investigating who is responsible for this and will make arrests soon.”
