The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has sealed at least 13 "illegal" coaching centres in Old Rajinder Nagar, following the tragic death of three civil service aspirants due to flooding in a coaching institute's basement. The incident, which occurred on a Saturday evening, saw water unexpectedly rush into the basement of Rau's IAS Study Circle, leading to the deaths of Tania Soni, Shreya Yadav, and Navin Delvin.

The MCD's enforcement action, continuing late into Sunday night, resulted in the closure of coaching centres including IAS Gurukul, Chahal Academy, Plutus Academy, Sai Trading, IAS Setu, Topper's Academy, Dainik Samvad, Civils Daily IAS, Career Power, 99 Notes, Vidya Guru, Guidance IAS, and Easy for IAS. These centres were found to be operating in basements in violation of existing regulations, according to an order from MCD Mayor Shaili Oberoi. Notices were posted on the premises of the sealed establishments.

The basement of Rau's IAS Study Circle, which had been converted into a library against the rules, was sealed by the police following the incident. The owner and coordinator of the coaching centre have been arrested and charged with culpable homicide.

The deceased students, Tania Soni, 25, Shreya Yadav, 25, and Navin Delvin, 28, were caught in the flooded basement along with several others who were later rescued after a seven-hour-long operation. Tania, originally from Telangana and a Delhi University student, had been living in a women's hostel of Delhi University's Maharaja Agrasen College. Shreya, from Uttar Pradesh’s Ambedkar Nagar, had recently moved to a PG Hostel in west Delhi's Shadipur area. Navin, a PhD student in Arts and Aesthetics at Jawaharlal Nehru University, was residing in rented accommodation in Vasant Kunj.

Investigations have pointed to multiple lapses by the coaching centre's management and civic authorities. Despite having obtained a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) from the MCD in August 2021, which stipulated the basement should be used only for parking and household storage, and a fire department NOC earlier this month affirming compliance with fire safety requirements, the basement was improperly used for commercial purposes. Building bye-laws require basements to have adequate drainage arrangements and multiple exit points, both of which were lacking in this case.

Local residents have criticized the area’s poor drainage system, clogged with silt, which contributed to the flooding during the rains.

The police have charged Abhishek Gupta, the owner, and Deshpal Singh, the coordinator of Rau's IAS Study Circle, under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) related to culpable homicide and negligence. The two have been remanded to judicial custody for 14 days.