Saidulajab building collapse: Illegal additions, basement excavation weakened structure, chargesheet says

A nearly 350-page chargesheet filed in a Saket court said that the deadly May 30 Saidulajab collapse was caused by the additional constructions on the four-storey structure and excavation in the basement that weakened the structure, according to officials aware of the matter

Published on: Aug 17, 2026, 08:03:30 IST

By Hemani Bhandari, New Delhi

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A nearly 350-page chargesheet filed in a Saket court said that the deadly May 30 Saidulajab collapse was caused by the additional constructions on the four-storey structure and excavation in the basement that weakened the structure, according to officials aware of the matter.

The chargesheet was filed in a Delhi court on August 13 by Mehrauli police. The next hearing is scheduled for August 22. (HT Archive)

A senior police officer said that the document said that the fifth and sixth floors had been constructed on top of the existing structure that included the ground floor. “The additional weight caused the building to collapse. The new construction was neither approved by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) nor was a fire NOC obtained for safety,” a senior police officer said, citing the document.

The property owner had also excavated a basement to construct an underground water tank, which further weakened the building’s structure, the chargesheet said, the officer said.

The officer added, “As the weight increased during the construction, the entire building collapsed. The concrete used in the building has been sent for forensic examination, and its report will be included in a supplementary chargesheet.”

HT previously reported that the chargesheet had held property owner Karamveer Singh and builders Manish Khatri and Anivash responsible and booked them under sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 290 (dangerous negligence during construction work), 125A (endangering the life or personal safety of others through negligence) and 125A of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) (causing grievous injury through negligence) after six people died in the collapse.

The chargesheet was filed in a Delhi court on August 13 by Mehrauli police. The next hearing is scheduled for August 22.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hemani Bhandari
Hemani Bhandari is a Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in New Delhi, where she reports on crime, policing, governance and social issues. With over a decade of experience in journalism, she specialises in combining on-ground reporting with evidence-based storytelling to examine the human impact of public policy, law enforcement and urban governance. Over the years, she has reported extensively on major developments in the capital, including crime investigations, civic challenges, protests, and issues affecting vulnerable communities. As a Special Correspondent, she focuses on producing exclusive investigations, enterprise stories and long-form features that go beyond daily news cycles. She has a keen interest in using public records, official data and field reporting to uncover systemic issues and present complex subjects in an accessible manner. A graduate of the Asian College of Journalism, Hemani believes in rigorous, ethical and evidence-based reporting. She is passionate about investigative journalism and continuously seeks to expand her skills in data journalism, open-source investigations and digital reporting techniques.Read More

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