CCTV footage shows mother, 10-month-old daughter before tragic fall at Bhati Gate, Lahore

LAHORE: CCTV footage has revealed the movements of a mother and her 10-month-old daughter shortly before they tragically fell into a sewage drain near Bhati Gate. The family had been visiting Data Darbar earlier, and the footage helped investigators reconstruct the sequence of events leading to the accident, ARY News reported.

According to preliminary investigative reports, the woman and her daughter were seen on CCTV leaving Data Darbar with family members and walking toward nearby market areas.

The footage shows them moving through streets toward Bhati Gate, where the child fell into a manhole and the mother reportedly jumped in to save her. Both tragically lost their lives.

The child’s body was recovered approximately 17 hours later, nearly 8 kilometers from the site, while the mother’s body was recovered about six hours after the incident.

Following the incident, an FIR was registered at Bhati Gate Police Station under Section 322 of the penal code. Authorities have since arrested three individuals named in the case: Project Manager Asghar Sandhu, Safety In-Charge Daniyal, and Site In-Charge Ahmed Nawaz.

Police confirmed that post-mortems for the mother and child are being conducted at Mayo Hospital. Initial reports indicate negligence on the part of the officials, and investigators are examining whether lapses in public safety and site management contributed to the deaths.

Authorities said the CCTV footage played a crucial role in tracking the family’s movements from Data Darbar to Bhati Gate and confirming the timeline of the tragic incident.

The incident has raised serious concerns about safety measures in crowded urban areas in Lahore, particularly near major religious and market hubs. Earlier, despite repeated pleas from the victim’s family, the district administration initially denied the incident, but the position changed after the mother’s body was recovered.