Bangalore: At around 4 pm on Friday, Javare Gowda, a 50 year old native of Mandya, who was plucking coconuts from the tree grown in the compound of one Vijay Kumar, lost his balance, fell and was severely injured.

He was immediately shifted to a private hospital in Rajajinagar, where he succumbed to his injuries around 9:30 pm the same day. The police rushed to the spot to record his statements, but were unable to do so as he was in a  coma. He was not following any safety precautions.

The owner should have checked if Gowda’s expertise in tree-climbing and coconut-picking was sufficient for him to climb a full-grown tree, the police said.

The owner, Vijay Kumar, has been booked under section 304 (A) of the IPC for causing death bynegligence. We handed over the victim’s body to his relatives after the post-mortem. Further investigations are on,” said a senior police officer.