The mother of Amity University student Harshit Bhatt, who drowned in a Noida construction pit on April 8, alleged conspiracy on Thursday, citing ‘black marks’ and wounds found on his body. His family says Bhatt was a trained swimmer, raising questions about the circumstances of his death. The post-mortem has confirmed death by drowning. Police say an FIR will be lodged soon.
“I went to the morgue, and they showed me my child. His entire body was covered in black marks — as if he had been beaten repeatedly. Furthermore, there are V-shaped bruises on his back," Harshit’s mother Deep Mala told ANI, demanding strict action against those responsible for her son’s death.
The 23-year-old man, a final-year Bachelor of Physical Education student from Indirapuram, Ghaziabad, drowned on Wednesday in a water-filled pit near the Supernova building in Noida’s Sector 94.
He had gone to the abandoned construction site with three friends after finishing his exams — for a picnic and a swim. While his three friends returned, Harshit did not. His body was later recovered by NDRF divers.
What makes his mother’s suspicion particularly sharp is this: Harshit was no ordinary swimmer. He was a Bachelor of Physical Education student, and photos and videos of him swimming are now circulating on social media, confirming he was an accomplished swimmer.
His mother has called him “the king of the water". That a trained swimmer drowned in a construction pit is what she simply cannot accept.
Speaking to ANI, his mother Deep Mala said, “I feel that my child was murdered because he was always punctual — he would leave home at the same time every day and return home at the same time. Every single one of his college lecturers has described him as a very good and decent young man."
She went further, telling the media directly: “I suspect these three friends killed my son." She also alleged that his body bore black marks and V-shaped bruises on his back — signs, she said, of a violent struggle.
Noida police have shifted the focus of the probe to whether Harshit fell into the pit — or was pushed.
Investigators are scanning CCTV footage from Sector 94 and questioning acquaintances to reconstruct his final hours.
All three friends who were present at the scene are currently in police custody and being interrogated. Police are also examining whether there are discrepancies in their statements — and crucially, why they took so long to alert the authorities after Harshit drowned.
The post-mortem has confirmed death by drowning, with water, soil and silt found in the stomach. An FIR is expected to be lodged shortly.
The pit itself — over 80 feet deep, filled with accumulated rainwater, located on a plot meant for a habitat centre — had no warning signs, no barricades, and no safety measures.
This comes months after techie Yuvraj Mehta died after his car plunged into a construction pit in Sector 150, following which Noida Authority had promised to identify and secure all such hazardous sites across the city. The authority is yet to issue any statement on Harshit’s death.
