3 contractors held over Delhi building collapse
NEW DELHI: A day after a building collapse in central Delhi's Chawri Bazar claimed two lives, police apprehended three contractors from Sirohi village in Faridabad district Friday. They were arrested later.
Siraj, Tajuddin and Furkan were arrested in a case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder in connection with the collapse. "The contractors knew that such an incident could happen, but they didn't pay any heed," an officer said, adding that no safety equipment was given to workers.
A senior officer said the contractors were involved in arranging labourers for the construction, which was being carried out late at night despite anti-pollution restrictions under Graded Response Action Plan.
The accused were aware that they did not have the requisite permissions to carry out construction work and had not got the building plan approved by the authority, he added.
The officer also said that though the contractors were not physically present at the site when the incident occurred Thursday morning, they were aware of the collapse through telephone calls. They allegedly fled after switching off their mobile phones.
According to police, Siraj and Tajuddin are residents of Gali Sitara in the Ajmeri Gate area, while Furkan lives in Gali Nal Wali in Ajmeri Gate’s Shahganj Chowk.
Police sources told TOI that the construction of the four-storey residential building had been under way for the past four to five months. “We suspect that the construction was not carried out properly. They were adding more floors, but the foundation may not have been strong enough to bear the additional load, leading to the collapse,” they added.
According to preliminary information, four people were rescued from the debris. Two of them succumbed to their injuries, while the other two are reported to be stable. The deceased labourers were identified as Kishori Sah (40) and Sanjeet (45), both residents of Railway Colony in Mandawali. The injured have been identified as Sahdev Chaudhary (25) and Firoz (37). They are residents of Mandawali and Railway Colony, respectively.
The rescue operation is still on, but nobody was found Friday, said sources.
Siraj, Tajuddin and Furkan were arrested in a case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder in connection with the collapse. "The contractors knew that such an incident could happen, but they didn't pay any heed," an officer said, adding that no safety equipment was given to workers.
A senior officer said the contractors were involved in arranging labourers for the construction, which was being carried out late at night despite anti-pollution restrictions under Graded Response Action Plan.
The accused were aware that they did not have the requisite permissions to carry out construction work and had not got the building plan approved by the authority, he added.
The officer also said that though the contractors were not physically present at the site when the incident occurred Thursday morning, they were aware of the collapse through telephone calls. They allegedly fled after switching off their mobile phones.
According to police, Siraj and Tajuddin are residents of Gali Sitara in the Ajmeri Gate area, while Furkan lives in Gali Nal Wali in Ajmeri Gate’s Shahganj Chowk.
Police sources told TOI that the construction of the four-storey residential building had been under way for the past four to five months. “We suspect that the construction was not carried out properly. They were adding more floors, but the foundation may not have been strong enough to bear the additional load, leading to the collapse,” they added.
According to preliminary information, four people were rescued from the debris. Two of them succumbed to their injuries, while the other two are reported to be stable. The deceased labourers were identified as Kishori Sah (40) and Sanjeet (45), both residents of Railway Colony in Mandawali. The injured have been identified as Sahdev Chaudhary (25) and Firoz (37). They are residents of Mandawali and Railway Colony, respectively.
The rescue operation is still on, but nobody was found Friday, said sources.
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