New Delhi: A 28-year-old man was electrocuted after presumably coming in contact with a defunct lamppost on a road in east Delhi’s Anand Vihar Wednesday evening. His body was found in a pit next to the lamppost, which is maintained by Public Works Department (PWD).His family alleged foul play behind his death. Denying the allegation, police said they would reach out to civic agencies to probe if there was any laxity on their part.A response from PWD is awaited.The deceased, Sandeep, was a caretaker in a nearby colony and was walking back home when he seemed to have come in contact with the lamppost on a divider on Somnath Marg around 8pm, police said.Sandeep’s uncle, Sunderlal (68), said, “I called him up at 9.50pm as he usually comes home by then. A stranger picked up the phone and disconnected the call. His phone has been missing since.”The family hit the street and started looking for Sandeep for around two hours, but could not trace him. Police found his body at 7am Thursday. The cause of his death was electrocution, according to the autopsy report.Sandeep was the sole breadwinner for his family. Orphaned when he was just six months old, he was raised by his aunt and uncle in a small one-room flat in Shahdara’s Bihari Colony. His aunt and uncle were contractual workers before retiring because of health issues.“Every month, Sandeep would hand over his entire salary to his uncle, whom he called pitaji. All of us are grieving for Sandeep. He died because of gross negligence by authorities. Instead of compensation, we want justice for him,” said his cousin, Manish.
