The bodies of two construction labourers who had allegedly drowned in Sunakalpalya Lake in West Bengaluru during idol immersion on Wednesday were fished out by a rescue team, on Thursday morning.
Somesh (23) and Jitendra aka Jithu (23) were from Maharashtra and staying in a temporary labourer settlement in Rajarajeshwarinagar.
According to Kengeri police, a group of workers in Rajarajeshwarinagar had installed a Durga idol on the occasion of Dasara.
Around 15 people carried the idol to the lake in a tractor on Wednesday evening as part of a procession ahead of its immersion. Five youths from the group got into the lake around 6.30 pm. Three of them returned to the lake bed while the other two drowned.
The labourers alerted the police at 7 pm. The rescue operation by the police and Fire and Emergency Services personnel was stopped after an hour as the officials noticed large amounts of silt in the lake.
The search operation resumed in the early hours of Thursday. The officials fished out both the bodies around 7.30 am. The bodies were handed over to their family members after post-mortem.
Police said Somesh and Jitendra were stuck in the silt while immersing the idol. “We suspect they were unable to pull themselves out of the silt,” an official said.
A case of unnatural death has been registered.