Delhi Police has filed a 638-page chargesheet against six people, including the owners of a building and two paying guest (PG) operators, in connection with the September 6 Satya Niketan building collapse that killed seven people, including five students and two labourers, officials said on Thursday.
The remaining two accused, Sudhanshu Lavnish Kumar and Shubham Tyagi, were operating PG accommodations in the building, police said.
The chargesheet, filed before a court, names building owner Hariram Gupta, his wife Urmila Gupta, their son Mahesh Gupta, labour contractor Sanoj Kumar and PG operators Sudhanshu Lavnish Kumar and Shubham Tyagi as accused. Police found that payments related to the property were transferred to her bank account. He was subsequently remanded in police custody for questioning about the PG accommodations, its lease arrangements and the construction work being carried out at the property.
Police have examined 87 witnesses in the case and invoked charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, rash and negligent acts endangering human life and negligence during repair or construction works, among other offences, according to the chargesheet. Tyagi, who was absconding after the incident, surrendered before Patiala House Court on September 11.
Hariram Gupta was the caretaker and a direct beneficiary of the building, while his wife Urmila Gupta is the registered owner, according to the investigation. The remaining two accused, Sudhanshu Lavnish Kumar and Shubham Tyagi, were operating PG accommodations in the building, police said. Police had earlier said the contractor had warned the building owner and PG operators about the structural safety of the property after a wall of a shop in the building was demolished.
