New Delhi: A day after two people were killed after a three-storey under-construction building collapsed in Old Delhi’s Chawri Bazar, the Delhi Police has arrested three contractors from Faridabad in connection with the incident.
The three contractors were apprehended Friday from village Sirohi, Dauj tehsil, District Faridabad. The police has identified them as Siraj, Tajuddin, and Furkan, all residents of Ajmeri Gate.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Rohit Rajbir Singh said that they are being arrested under a Section 105 Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita case.
The incident took place in the narrow bylanes of Chawri Bazar, which sees an increased footfall during the festive season. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has suspended a junior engineer and an assistant engineer.
DCP Singh said a building was being constructed and work was underway on the third floor. “During the pouring of the (concrete for) the slab, the building collapsed. The building has caved in significantly, and people in the surrounding buildings have been evacuated. The building next to the collapsed one is also in a precarious condition,” he said.
“Unauthorised construction was going on here, and a letter had already been sent by us to the municipal agencies. We were following up on it, but the work had not been stopped. Some 10 to 15 labourers were present at the time of the incident,” the DCP said.
The Delhi Police had said that four persons were rescued from the debris. Of these, two have succumbed to their injuries, while the other two are stable and out of danger. The deceased have been identified as Kishori, 40, and Sanjeet, 45, both residents of Railway Colony, Mandawali.
Meanwhile, the police said the injured persons are stable and out of danger. They have been identified as Sahdev Chaudhary, 25, and Firoz, 37—both residents of Railway Colony, Mandawali.
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MCD reveals red flags
As per the MCD’s initial incident report, the maintenance department of the Old Delhi Zone issued an advisory on 28 April this year to the owner, Samiullah, regarding the dilapidated condition of the building.
The owner was advised to undertake necessary strengthening and corrective measures in accordance with the applicable building by-laws, under the supervision of a qualified structural engineer, and to submit a structural stability/safety certificate issued by a professionally qualified structural engineer duly empanelled with MCD.
On 15 June, information was received from Delhi Police regarding unauthorised construction activity at the property. Photographs enclosed with the communication indicated that repair and maintenance work was being undertaken at the premises.
Taking cognisance of the communication, an inspection was conducted, during which the owner was found undertaking repair work at the premises. No subsequent complaint regarding fresh construction activity involving complete demolition of the existing structure, or any other information in this regard, was received thereafter.
“The preliminary inquiry indicates that the owner had undertaken fresh construction activity on the second and third floors under the garb of repair work, in violation of the terms of the advisory issued by MCD and the applicable building by-laws, without obtaining the requisite permissions and without any prior intimation or information to MCD,” the corporation’s detailed incident report states.
It is further reported that the shuttering of the third-floor lintel was hurriedly removed, reportedly in apprehension of restrictions on the ongoing construction activity. Subsequently, the third-floor lintel collapsed, triggering the collapse of the entire building.
As per the records received from the Property Tax Department, the owner, Shri Samiullah, deposited property tax amounting to Rs 75,114 on 22.04.2026 under the Self-Assessment (SUNIYO) Scheme, covering six financial years from FY 2020–21 to FY 2025–26.
In the self-assessment returns, the property was declared as a Ground plus Four Floors (G+4) building, having a covered area of approximately 80 square metres (approximately 96 square yards).
It is submitted that while portions of the earlier structure existed at the premises, the owner “appears to have undertaken fresh construction on the second and third floors under the garb of repair work, resulting in a G+3 structure, beyond the scope of the advisory issued by MCD”, the report says.
“The fresh construction was undertaken without complying with the conditions stipulated in the advisory or obtaining the requisite statutory permissions. The declaration of excess floor in self-assessment of property during filing of property tax shows the mala fide intention to misguide the authority to take advantage of protection under special laws,” it adds.
A written complaint has also been submitted to local police for registration of a report against the owner, Samiullah, regarding the unauthorised construction activity.
Further, the MCD has initiated a survey of adjacent buildings to assess their structural safety and facilitate structural safety audits through qualified structural engineers duly empanelled with MCD. Appropriate action will be taken based on the survey findings and structural safety assessments.
Additionally, action is being initiated against nearby buildings where unauthorised construction activities are ongoing. Field staff have been directed to identify such properties and take stringent action in accordance with the rules.
(Edited by Nardeep Singh Dahiya)
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