A three-year-old boy, Dhruv Chandansingh Bisht, recently drowned in the swimming pool of the Ameya Classic Club in Yashwant Nagar, Virar West.
According to the FIR filed by his mother, Renusingh Chandansingh Bisht, 37, the toddler was at the club for his regular swimming session when he went missing for several minutes — only to be later found unresponsive in the pool.
The nightmare
Renu, a homemaker, said she had taken both her sons — nine-year-old Rudra and Dhruv — to the club around 3.15 pm on October 28 for their usual swim. Her husband, Chandansingh Bisht, 53, works as an assistant personnel officer with the Indian Railways, and the family has been members of the Ameya Club for the past five years.
“I helped Dhruv put on his swimming costume and made sure his floaters were strapped on tightly, just like every other day. Both my boys were in the water, swimming and calling out to me,” Renu recalled in her statement. “Dhruv took a dip, came out for a bit and went towards the skating area. After a few minutes, he returned to the pool.”
The club, she said, had two coaches — Kaustubh Meher and Harsh Shetty — and was supervised by manager Pravin Zore. Confident that her son was safe under their supervision, Renu took her seat near the parents’ waiting area beside the pool.
‘Nowhere to be seen’
A few minutes later, Renu noticed that Dhruv was no longer visible in the pool. “I couldn’t see him anywhere, so I asked the coaches where he was. One of them brushed it off, saying, ‘He can’t drown — he’ll drown others.’ They then told me to check, suggesting he might have gone to the washroom,” she said.
When a frantic search of the washroom yielded nothing, panic set in. “I ran back and shouted that my child wasn’t there. Only then did they start looking seriously,” she added.
Around 4.15 pm, Dhruv was pulled out of the water — motionless. The coaches rushed him to Ankur Hospital, Virar West, where doctors declared the boy dead before admission.
“I completely blacked out. I don’t remember what happened after that. The next thing I recall is someone carrying my boy in their arms — his body was swollen, and he wasn’t moving,” she said.
‘Negligence cost my son his life’
In her police complaint, Renu alleged gross negligence by the club staff. “My son drowned because the coaches and the manager failed to watch over him. Their carelessness and irresponsibility cost my child his life,” she stated in her FIR.
Dhruv’s father, who was at work when the tragedy unfolded, was informed only after his wife rushed home in shock. The couple later went to the club office to ask where their son had been taken, before locating him at the hospital.
Dhruv Chandansingh Bisht, the deceased. PICS/BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The Bisht family, still in shock, is demanding accountability. “My child trusted them. I trusted them. But they didn’t care enough to keep an eye on him,” Renu said through tears.
“I want justice for my son. No other family should ever go through this pain. The club must have qualified, responsible trainers, and a strict investigation should be carried out. I’ve lost my child — nothing can bring him back, nothing can replace him,” she added.
Chandansingh alleged that the family hadn`t been shown CCTV footage from the facility. “Basic safety rules are being ignored. There are no barricades in the swimming pool to indicate depth levels. I’m not sure if the coaches are trained to handle such emergencies. They should be more vigilant, especially with younger children. As members, we don’t even know if we are insured or if such incidents are covered. I’ve lost my son, and I don’t want any other parent to go through this pain. This should never happen again,” he said.
Case registered
Following Renu’s complaint, the Bolinj police registered a case late on October 29 against the club’s manager and swimming coaches under Sections 106(1) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, which with causing death by a rash or negligent act and the legal principle of common intention.
