Delhi Police lodge FIR in Nabi Karim building collapse that killed 3

At 6.20pm on Saturday, a 65-year-old contractor and two labourers died while working in the basement of a hotel site when a wall caved in and led to their deaths

Published on: May 19, 2025, 05:08:06 IST

By Jignasa Sinha, Paras Singh

Prefer HTon Google

Share via

Copy link

Delhi Police on Sunday lodged an FIR against the owner of an under-construction building in Nabi Karim, where three men died after a wall collapsed due to gusty winds and rain a day before, and detained him for questioning over alleged negligence. Police said they would ask civic authorities to conduct an inspection.

Workers assess the damage and fix the roof at the New Ashok Nagar RRTS station. (Sanjeev Verma/HT Photo)

An officer, who did not wish to be named, said, “It was raining heavily and the labourers had stopped working. However, as soon as the rain subsided, the contractor and workers resumed work. The thick wall was not steady; it caved in and killed the three men.”

Police said they are questioning the owner and labourers, and no arrest has been made yet. “The investigation is against him on charges of causing death by negligence and negligent conduct with regard to repairing buildings. We have questioned him and taken his statement. We will also write to MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi) on Monday and conduct an inspection to ascertain if the hotel building has violated any norms,” a second officer, requesting anonymity, said.

At 6.20pm on Saturday, a 65-year-old contractor and two labourers died while working in the basement of a hotel site when a wall caved in and led to their deaths. A third labourer, who was injured, is undergoing treatment, police said.

The deceased were identified as Prabhu Kumar, 65, the contractor, and his employees Niranjan Kumar, 40, and Roshan Kumar, 35. Police said the wall inside the basement was around 20-30 feet long and the workers were trapped under it. Police found that the labourers had been working at the site for around two months without safety gear.

Deputy commissioner of police (central) Harsha Vardhan said legal action is being taken as per procedure.

RRTS to resume on Tuesday at New Ashok Nagar station

Operations of the RRTS rail at the New Ashok Nagar station on the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut corridor remained suspended on Sunday due to damage to the station’s roof during the storm on Saturday. An NCRTC official on Sunday said the station did not suffer any further damage, but the damage to the roof led to the suspension of operations.

The official said operations may resume from Tuesday. “Operations at the New Ashok Nagar Namo Bharat Station, which were temporarily suspended following the weather-related damage, may resume from 6am day after tomorrow (20th May) in line with standard service timings, subject to successful completion of safety trial runs scheduled for tomorrow,” the official said.

The official said that corrective measures were being initiated to ensure that there was no repeat of the incident.

On Saturday, a portion of the tin roof at the New Ashok Nagar Station was damaged in an intense windstorm. “As a precautionary measure, operations at New Ashok Nagar station were immediately stopped for the time being. No injuries have been reported in connection with the incident. A detailed investigation is underway, and necessary rectification measures are being initiated to prevent any recurrence,” the statement said.

The Aam Aadmi Party attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state government.

AAP’s Delhi chief Saurabh Bharadwaj, sharing a video of the collapsed roof on social media platform X, posted: “This is the pre-monsoon report card of BJP’s four-engine government in Delhi: 5 deaths in the first spell of rain in May, 4 more in Saturday’s storm. A total of 9 people have lost their lives, and the monsoon hasn’t even started yet.”

Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva hit back at the AAP, terming their statements an attempt to defame the BJP government by “resorting to falsehoods”.

The Delhi BJP president said the RRTS administration clarified on Saturday evening that only a small tin shed was blown away due to the strong storm, and the rest of the station’s infrastructure remained unaffected. Sachdeva said it was “unfortunate” that AAP leaders were repeatedly claiming on social media that the New Ashok Nagar Rapid Rail Station has been “destroyed”.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jignasa Sinha
Jignasa Sinha is a Special Correspondent at Hindustan Times in New Delhi. With more than six years of reporting experience, she covers crime and policing in the national capital. Her beats also include Delhi prisons, the Delhi Fire Services and Delhi courts, while she regularly reports on gender, labour and social justice. Over the course of her career, Jignasa has reported on major criminal investigations, international crime syndicates, high-profile cyber fraud cases, law-and-order developments, protests, disasters and public institutions. Her reporting combines breaking news with in-depth, long form, human interest stories that examine the human impact of public policy, policing and the criminal justice system. In addition to reporting for the newspaper, she contributes to the Hindustan Times website and app, and plays an active role in coordinating on-ground coverage of major developments and breaking news across Delhi. Before joining Hindustan Times, Jignasa worked at The Indian Express newspaper in New Delhi, where she spent five years covering crime, Delhi airport, courts and health. She began her journalism career as an intern at an AI magazine in Bengaluru while pursuing her postgraduate diploma in multimedia journalism at the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media.Read More
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Paras Singh
Paras Singh is a New Delhi-based journalist with Hindustan Times, where he serves as Deputy Metro Editor. He reports on urban governance, the Delhi government, the Delhi BJP, water management, the environment, communities and city life. He joined Hindustan Times in 2021 after beginning his journalism career at The Times of India in 2016, where he covered civic bodies, the water and power sectors, and urban infrastructure. Over the last decade, some of his reporting has led to significant public impact, with investigations into environmental violations, corruption and illegal industrial activity contributing to multiple judicial interventions by the National Green Tribunal and the Delhi High Court. A graduate of St. Stephen's College, University of Delhi, Paras studied journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), New Delhi. Having extensively covered the capital's evolving civic and governance landscape, his recent work increasingly explores Delhi's history, built heritage, urban evolution and the relationship between people and place, alongside continuing to report on governance and public policy.Read More

Catch every big hit, every wicket with Crickit, a one stop destination for Live Scores, Match Stats, Infographics & much more. Explore now!

Stay updated with all top Cities including, Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai and more across India. Stay informed on the latest happenings in World News along with Delhi Election 2025 and Delhi Election Result 2025 Live, New Delhi Election Result Live, Kalkaji Election Result Live at Hindustan Times.