Granite slab collapse: 3 days on, police book Elante Mall owners, mgmt

The incident had left Surbhi Jain, 35, and her 13-year-old niece, Maisha Dixit, a child actor in Bollywood and popular TV shows, grievously injured

Three days after a granite slab from a pillar fell on a woman and her 13-year-old niece at Nexus Elante Mall on Sunday, police lodged an FIR against the mall owners and management on Wednesday night.

Speaking about the Granite slab collapse at Elante, police said they were going to conduct investigation, following which responsible parties, including those named in the FIR, will be called for questioning. (HT Photo)

The incident had left Surbhi Jain, 35, and her 13-year-old niece, Maisha Dixit, a child actor in Bollywood and popular TV shows, grievously injured. As per the FIR, the accident occurred around 4 pm on the ground floor of the mall, outside the Marks and Spencers store, as the family was celebrating Maisha’s birthday.

This is the second FIR against the mall owners within three months. Earlier, police had booked them after a toy train mishap at the mall claimed the life of an 11-year-old boy on June 22.

Speaking about the latest incident, police said they were going to conduct investigation, following which responsible parties, including those named in the FIR, will be called for questioning.

Slab fell from 25-ft height: Complainant

According to Surbhi Jain’s complaint to police, the granite slab fell from a height of 25 feet, hitting her head and causing severe injuries. Her niece also suffered injuries to her hip. The complainant alleged that no immediate help was offered by the mall authorities, and it was a staff member from Marks and Spencers who came to assist her while she was bleeding profusely and unable to walk.

Surbhi stated that she was taken to the mall’s medical room, but no medical staff was present for 20 minutes, delaying her treatment. She was later shifted to Eden Hospital in Industrial Area, where her injuries were treated through stitches, scans and tests. Jain remained hospitalised until Monday evening.

The police were informed about the incident, but due to her condition, she was unable to give a statement at the time.

In her complaint to the SSP and DGP, she accused the management of Nexus Elante Mall of gross negligence and lack of safety measures, including no SOP in place for injury or mishaps. She further alleged that the mall authorities pressured her to settle the matter, while she had been suffering physical and emotional trauma, including inability to work for at least six months due to her injuries.

Jain demanded legal action against the owners and management of the mall under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). She also requested that the CCTV footage of the incident be preserved, as she fears the mall authorities might delete it to avoid accountability.

Based on her complaint, police registered a case under Sections 125 (A) and 125 (B) (causing hurt by the act of endangering life) of BNS at the Industrial Area police station at 11 pm on Wednesday.

“We are aware about the FIR. The team is fully cooperating with the investigating authorities and has submitted all evidences, including CCTV footage, to the police to further assess the incident. The matter is now subjudice. We will be unable to offer any further comment in this regard,” said the official spokesperson of the mall.

Chargesheet awaited in toy train case

Meanwhile, even more than three months after a minor boy’s death in a toy train mishap at the mall, Chandigarh Police have yet to file a chargesheet in the case.

On June 22, Shahbaz Singh, an 11-year-old boy from Punjab’s SBS Nagar district, had died after a compartment of the toy train he was riding overturned at the mall.

Although two partners of Pixie Land Management, the company operating the toy train, were arrested following Shahbaz’s death, both Sunil Kumar Goyal, 52, and Puneet Kumar Ahuja, 48, were released on bail.

They are facing allegations of gross negligence, including failing to provide basic safety measures like window grilles and seat belts on the train, under Section 304-A (causing death due to negligence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). SHO Jaspal Singh stated that the chargesheet in Shahbaz’s case will be filed soon.

The victim’s family had demanded action against the toy train driver, and managements of the mall and Pixie Land.