Satya Niketan PG collapse a result of 'callous, criminal' conduct: Delhi High Court

The court made the remarks while hearing a petition filed by Aakarshak Danveer Rathi, seeking an independent probe into the collapse.

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday observed that the Satya Niketan building collapse was “not an ordinary mishap”, but a tragedy that claimed the lives of students who had come to the city from small towns with hopes and dreams for a better future.

MCD Workers demolish the 'Dangerous' building Adjacent of collapsed PG at Satya Niketan. (Vipin Kumar/HT Photo)

A bench of chief justice DK Upadhyaya and justice Tejas Karia remarked that their aspirations had been shattered due to “callous and criminal conduct”.

“It’s not any ordinary incident of any mishap. These four had come to city with hopes, dreams, coming from small towns and that all has been shattered by callous criminal conduct… Who does not know the problem of hostels since at least 15 to 20 years? Students are flocking to Delhi for higher education in the hope that they will able to build their careers. See what has happened,” the bench said.

Court hears petition on collapse

The court made the remarks while hearing a petition filed by one Aakarshak Danveer Rathi, seeking an independent probe into the collapse, an audit of paying guest (PG) accommodations, hostels and other residential or commercial establishments, and a detailed report on such premises found to be operating without complying with statutory requirements, along with details of the action taken against them.

The court’s observations came after it referred to a newspaper article highlighting the lives and aspirations of five young men from small towns who had come to Delhi and died in the collapse.

During the hearing, Delhi Police, represented by additional solicitor general Chetan Sharma, and the Centre’s standing counsel Ashish Dixit, submitted that the Delhi government had decided to build hostels to accommodate 10,000 students enrolled in colleges and universities across the city.

The court, however, tagged the petition along with other petitions concerning the incident and scheduled the next hearing for September 25.

Collapse triggers enquiry, precautionary action

A five-storey building in Satya Niketan, which housed a PG accommodation known as Hostel Daze for Delhi University students, collapsed on September 6, killing at least seven people and injuring five others. According to police, renovation work was under way on the ground floor when the structure collapsed around 1.30pm. The building was estimated to be 40-50 years old.

Investigators arrested the owner of the property, Hariram Gupta, 81, a Gurugram resident. Police registered an FIR against Gupta and unidentified others under sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 290 (negligent conduct in pulling down, repairing or constructing buildings) and 125 (act endangering the life or personal safety of others) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at South Campus police station.

Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta ordered a magisterial inquiry into the collapse.

On September 7, the high court had directed the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to conduct an inquiry, at the highest executive level, into the collapse of the building at Satya Niketan, calling the incident as unfortunate and saying that the same could have been avoided had authorities been alive to the statutory duty cast upon them.

The court, also during the hearing, asked the government to consider doubling hostel facilities for students, observing that Delhi University does not have adequate hostel accommodation for outstation students, forcing them and their parents to seek shelter in private PGs.

Two days after the incident, MCD had started controlled demolition of the adjoining building after officials at the site declared it dangerous. Civic officials said metal jacks and support poles had to be installed to stabilise the structure and prevent it from collapsing.