The report said that the owners also did not engage, hire or obtain advice from any unqualified structural engineer/architect in respect of the basement repair

Updated on: Sep 24, 2026, 15:14:06 IST

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Six people arrested in connection with the Satya Niketan building collapse failed to take adequate safety precautions during construction creating a situation that endangered the PG student’s lives and resulted in their deaths and serious injuries, Delhi Police told the high court in its status report.

In its status report filed on September 21, the police further stated that the accused left the site after the incident instead of taking responsibility and assisting in the immediate aftermath.

The eight page status report which will be considered by a bench of chief justice DK Upadhyaya and justice Tejas Karia on Friday added that during investigation it was revealed the building owner Urmila Gupta, her husband Hari Ram Gupta and her son Mahesh Gupta jointly manage the property and they did not obtain land use conversion permission, let out the premises commercially without obtaining the permission from the authorities.

‘Unqualified structural engineer/architect’

The report said that the owners also did not engage, hire or obtain advice from any unqualified structural engineer/architect in respect of the basement repair and the structural modification carried out at the ground floor shops and the other portions of the building.

“It has further been found during investigation, that no land-use conversion permission had been obtained by the said persons. The premises were being commercially let out without obtaining the requisite permissions from the competent authorities. The owners had also not engaged, hired or obtained advice from any qualified structural engineer/architect in respect of the basement repair and the construction/structural modification work carried out at the ground-floor shops and other portions of the building. There is no complaint received about this property as per available records maintained at PS South Campus prior to this incident,” the report said.

It added, “That, prima facie, the six arrested accused persons failed to take adequate safety precautions during the construction/repair/modification/alteration work carried out in and around the building, which resulted in a situation endangering human life and ultimately caused deaths and serious injuries to PG students and other persons. It is further revealed that after the incident, the accused persons left the spot instead of taking responsibility and assisting in the immediate aftermath of the incident.”

The report was filed in a petition filed by one Aniket Kumar Gupta, who sought directions for a fair and comprehensive investigation into the collapse, including an examination of the roles of the owner, contractor, builder, architect, structural engineer and workers.

On September 7, the high court had asked Delhi police, Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and Delhi University to respond to the petition, and had asked 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 the authorities been alive to the statutory duty cast upon them.

In the report, the Delhi police further stated that the contractor Sanoj engaged two unqualified laborers for carrying out the repair and neither him nor the owners obtained the opinion of any qualified architect/structural expert before undertaking the same.

What probe revealed

“During investigation it was further revealed that accused Sanoj had engaged two unqualified laborers for carrying out the repair/structural modification work. Sanoj, being an unprofessional and unqualified rajmistri, failed to take adequate safety precautions during the repair/modification work carried out in the old building. It is further revealed that neither accused Sanoj nor the building owners obtained the opinion of any qualified architect/structural expert before undertaking the said work,” the report stated.

The report stated that PG operators Shubham Tyagi and Sudhanshu Lovenish Kumar had taken the premises on rent without adequately verifying the building’s structural safety and design. It alleged that they failed to implement sufficient safety measures for the PG residents or take appropriate steps to warn and guide them about the potential risks arising from the ongoing construction and structural work.

“Investigation has further revealed that the said accused persons took the premises on rent, without obtaining proper verification regarding the structural safety/design of the building. They failed to take appropriate precautions, despite construction/alteration/structural work being carried out in the building. It is further revealed that the accused persons failed to take adequate safety measures for the PG residents and did not take appropriate precautions to warn or guide them regarding the potential danger arising from the ongoing construction/structural work,” the report stated.

A five-storey building in Satya Niketan, which housed a paying guest 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.

FIR sections

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.

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