New Delhi: A private criminal complaint has been filed before Shashank Singh, Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Indore, seeking criminal prosecution of government officials in connection with the deaths caused by contaminated drinking water in Bhagiratpura, in what is emerging as one of India’s most severe municipal water contamination disasters in recent years. The court has sought a status report from the police and fixed 12 March as the next date of hearing.
The complaint, registered as criminal case number 96/2026 and filed on 8 January, names then municipal commissioner Dileep Kumar Yadav, who is a 2014 batch Indian Administrative Service officer, former municipal commissioner Shivam Verma (IAS 2013), assistant commissioner Rohit Sisoniya (IAS 2017), executive engineer Sanjeev Shrivastava, and other officials and employees of the Indore Municipal Corporation as accused.
Filed by Bhagiratpura resident Ramu, the complaint alleges that failure to maintain and monitor the municipal water supply system resulted in sewage contamination of drinking water, causing serious illness and at least 23 deaths in the locality. The private complaint marks a significant escalation, as it seeks to establish criminal liability of serving and former civic officials at senior levels.
The CJM court is expected to examine the police status report on 12 March before deciding whether sufficient grounds exist to initiate criminal prosecution against the said officials. The CJM court has directed Banganga police station to submit a status report before proceeding further, including consideration of whether to order registration of an FIR or initiate criminal proceedings against the accused officials under relevant provisions.
The judicial action comes amid significant administrative reshuffles following the outbreak. Shivam Verma is currently serving as Collector of Indore district, holding overall charge of district administration. Dileep Kumar Yadav has been removed as municipal commissioner and posted to the state secretariat in Bhopal. Rohit Sisoniya has also been transferred to Bhopal and assigned a secretariat-level role after being removed from his municipal position. Executive engineer Sanjeev Shrivastava has been placed under suspension pending departmental inquiry.
The Bhagiratpura locality witnessed widespread illnesses beginning in December 2025 after sewage entered the municipal drinking water pipeline, contaminating the supply to thousands of residents. The contamination led to severe gastrointestinal infections, hospitalisations, and multiple deaths, particularly among elderly and vulnerable residents. Laboratory testing confirmed bacterial contamination consistent with sewage infiltration. Residents had reported foul-smelling and discoloured water prior to the outbreak, and the incident has raised serious questions about infrastructure maintenance, administrative oversight, and response mechanisms in one of India’s largest and repeatedly ranked cleanest cities.
