'He Reached In Morning And Then…': Family’s Heartbreaking Account After Student Dies In Satya Niketan PG Collapse

Jagran Correspondent, Delhi: A day after a multi-storey building collapsed in Satya Niketan in Southwest Delhi, which left 7 dead and several injured on Sunday. Out of those, 2 students who are dead are Arpit Jahaj and Akshat Singh Yadav, who lost their lives in the tragedy and were the only sons of their respective families. Both had come to Delhi around two years ago with dreams of pursuing their education and building a better future. But one tragic accident shattered all the hopes their families had placed in them. Following the post-mortem examinations, police handed over their bodies to their families.

Now the families are sharing their ordeal. On Raksha Bandhan, the sisters had tied rakhi on their brothers’ wrists. At the time, who could have imagined that those threads would become the last reminder of the bond between brother and sister? The rakhi threads had not even broken when the Satya Niketan tragedy snuffed out the only sons of two families.

He Had Reached Delhi Just Hours Before Tragedy

Arpit Jahaj, a resident of Dewas, Madhya Pradesh, was a second-year B.Com student at Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College. He had gone home for the Raksha Bandhan holiday. After having Rakhi tied by his sister and celebrating the festival with his family, he left for Delhi on Saturday.

He reached his hostel at around 8 am on Sunday. As soon as he arrived, he called his mother and said, “Mom, I have reached.”

Hearing that her son had reached Delhi safely, his mother breathed a sigh of relief. Little did she know that this would be the last time she would hear her son’s voice. Just a few hours after Arpit reached his hostel, the building where he was staying suddenly collapsed.

At around 2 pm on Sunday, his friends called his father and told him that the building had collapsed and that there was no information about Arpit. The news left the family devastated. His relatives immediately boarded a flight to Delhi.

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When they reached the AIIMS Trauma Centre, they found their son’s body wrapped in a burial cloth.

Arpit is survived by his parents and an elder sister. His father works as a driver. The family had placed great hopes in their son. Arpit wanted to complete his education and build a better future for himself and his family.

The father who had sent his son to Delhi so that he could study and make something of his life could not hold himself together when he saw his son in this condition. His mother was inconsolable. His elder sister also broke down as she remembered the rakhi she had tied around her brother’s wrist.

Just a few days earlier, she had prayed for her brother’s long life. Now, his lifeless body lay before her.

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Akshat's Sister Asks: “Who Will I Tie Rakhi To Now?”

Akshat Singh Yadav, a resident of Katni, Madhya Pradesh, was also a second-year BA programme student at PGDAV College. He too had come to Delhi around two years ago to pursue his studies.

Akshat had returned home on August 31, where his sister tied a rakhi on his wrist, before he came back to Delhi. His family had hoped that he would complete his education and fulfil their dreams. But the tragedy brought everything to an abrupt end.

After hearing the news of Akshat’s death, his family was inconsolable outside the mortuary. His mother, Shweta, repeatedly fainted as she remembered her son. His father, Manta Singh Yadav, could not hold back his tears.

But the deepest pain was visible on the face of his younger sister, Aditi, who is just a Class 10 student. Aditi repeatedly broke down while remembering her brother. She had only one question on her lips: “Who will I tie rakhi to now?”

( With inputs from Mohammed Saqib )