Chawri Bazar collapse: Contractors ignored workers’ warnings; 3 held

Deputy commissioner of police (central) Rohit Rajbir Singh identified the accused as Siraj, Tajuddin and Furkan, all residents of the Ajmeri Gate area.

The contractors overseeing construction of the building that collapsed in Old Delhi’s Chawri Bazar on Thursday, killing at least two people, allegedly ignored workers’ warnings about poor-quality construction material and the structure’s inability to support another concrete slab, according to the first information report (FIR) registered in the incident. Police arrested three contractors in connection with the collapse early on Friday.

Contractors ignored norms to keep construction costs in check, a survivor told police in complaint. (Sonu Mehta/ HT Photo)

Deputy commissioner of police (central) Rohit Rajbir Singh identified the accused as Siraj, Tajuddin and Furkan, all residents of the Ajmeri Gate area. They were arrested from Sirohi village in Faridabad’s Dauj tehsil. Their full names were not immediately available.

Contractors ignore warnings

In his complaint, Firoz, a 37-year-old construction worker from Bihar who lives in Mandawali and survived the collapse, alleged that the contractors repeatedly ignored warnings about structural concerns, insisting that work continue because making changes would increase costs.

What the FIR says (HT PRINT)

“We had informed the contractors that the lintel had not dried up and we cannot put another one... to support the lintel, more cement and wood is required... but they asked us to continue saying that the cost would increase,” Firoz said in the FIR read out to HT.

The FIR names Tajuddin and Furkan as accused and invokes sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 290 (negligent conduct with respect to constructing buildings), 125(a) (negligent act with respect to building) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

According to Firoz’s statement, the workers had been engaged by the contractors to carry out construction on the plot, measuring around 70 square yards. Three concrete slabs had already been laid. Firoz alleged that the existing slab was not strong enough to bear the weight of another and required additional cement and construction material for support. The contractors allegedly asked them to continue working.

The workers also attempted to bring the matter to the owners’ attention. “However, they said that the contractors were handling the construction work so we should tell them,” Firoz said.

The building, a G+3 structure in Gali Sitara near Chawri Bazar Metro station, collapsed in two stages around 9.30am on Thursday. The lintel of the third floor reportedly gave way during concrete work, followed by the collapse of the remaining floors within 15 to 20 minutes.

Two workers, Kishori, 40, and Sanjeet, 45, died, while two others sustained injuries.

No construction plan, Delhi Police's alerts

The arrests come amid questions over how construction continued despite the building allegedly having no sanctioned plan and Delhi Police having alerted the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) about construction activity at the site nearly five months earlier.

In a letter dated June 15, the station house officer of Hauz Qazi police station had alerted the deputy commissioner of MCD’s City SP Zone about new residential construction spread over around 70 square yards at property number 4547-48 in Wali Sheesh Mahal, Ajmeri Gate, and sought action.

MCD acknowledged receiving the communication but said its subsequent inspection found the owner undertaking repairs advised by its maintenance department in April. In its inquiry, the civic body alleged the owner used the repair advisory as a cover to undertake fresh construction on the second and third floors without the requisite permissions.

The MCD inquiry report also flagged the property’s tax declarations, alleging that excess floor coverage had been declared with the intention of misleading authorities and claiming protection under laws applicable to older structures.

The rescue operation was hampered by the narrow lanes of the walled city, which prevented heavy machinery from reaching the site. Rescue teams relied largely on manual debris removal. Residents of neighbouring buildings were evacuated after police warned that one adjoining structure was in a precarious condition.

Chief minister Rekha Gupta ordered the suspension of the junior engineer and assistant engineer concerned, a detailed inquiry and an FIR against the contractor. She also directed officials to ensure treatment for the injured and provide ex gratia assistance to the victims’ families.

Survivors recount final moments before collapse

A wooden log supporting the concrete slab being laid on the third floor broke around 9.30am as at least five labourers carried construction material in mortar pans from the ground floor to the top floor, passing them along a human chain on the staircase, according to statements given by two survivors. The log’s failure disturbed the balance of other supporting logs, which also gave way, causing the lintel to collapse first, followed by the entire structure, said three people aware of the statements given by survivors Sahdev Chaudhary, 25, and Firoz. Both are undergoing treatment in the intensive care unit of Lok Nayak Hospital.

Chaudhary and Firoz were among nearly 18 labourers at the site. At least 11 managed to escape, while the two survivors and Kishori and Sanjeet were pulled out of the debris.

Four labourers were still missing, with search operations continuing until late Friday evening.

The survivors told investigators they were daily-wage workers employed by a contractor named Sahud Mohammad, earning ₹700 a day. They arrived at the site around 8.30am.

“Firoz said he, along with Chaudhary, Sanjeet, Kishori and another worker named Shintu, was carrying concrete mixture from the ground to the third floor. They had formed a human chain on the staircase, passing mortar pans containing the mixture to each other. Shintu was on the third floor and Sanjeet was passing the pans to him after receiving them from Chaudhary. Chaudhary was getting the pans from Firoz and the latter from Kishori, who was last in the chain,” one person said.

According to another person, Chaudhary told investigators that Shintu and Sanjeet first noticed the wooden log breaking and raised an alarm. Before the labourers could react, the other supporting logs also gave way and the lintel collapsed. Chaudhary said Sanjeet asked him, Firoz and Kishori to run out. Firoz rushed to the first floor and jumped out. As he landed in the lane, debris fell on him, injuring his right ankle, shoulder, hands and face.

Firoz later spoke to his wife and four children, who are in their village in Madhepura, using a hospital staff member’s phone. He told them he was fine and has been insisting on being discharged so he can return home, the third person said. Chaudhary also briefly left the hospital to look for his phone and belongings at the site, but was brought back by evening.

Chaudhary, Kishori, Sanjeet and at least eight other labourers, all from Bihar’s Khagaria and Madhepura districts, were to travel home by train on Thursday night for Diwali and Chhath. They had planned to finish work, return to their flat in Mandawali and board a train at 11.45pm.

Raja Kumar, whose 40-year-old uncle Bipin Ram is among the missing, said the workers were supposed to travel to Bihar that night. “I last spoke to my uncle around 5.30am on Thursday. He told me to meet him at Mandawali in the evening so we could proceed to the railway station. Since I heard about the collapse, I have been at the scene, hoping to see my uncle alive.”

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