Police are looking for the current owner who was allegedly trying to convert the house into a PG accommodation.(Express Photo by Abhinav Saha)Days after two labourers died while four others sustained injuries after a three-storey house under renovation collapsed on them in South Delhi’s Satya Niketan, police arrested the contractor from Bihar’s Araria district on Friday.
According to police, the accused, Md Raees (46), had hired the workers, who also hailed from Araria, to renovate the house. They were paid around Rs 300-Rs 350 per day.
DCP (Southwest) Manoj C said, “We arrested Raees who has been absconding since the day of the incident. Labourers at the spot told us he was there in the morning but left after some time. We are yet to ascertain if he was present at the time of the collapse. An FIR has been registered against him. He was the contractor in charge of modifying the building.” Raees has been booked under IPC sections 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide) and section 304 (culpable homicide), said police.
During questioning, Raees said that he was hired by a broker who asked him to renovate the house.
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“The previous owner was a businessman… We contacted him and found that he sold the house through the broker. We have received six-seven names of potential owners, but the documents aren’t clear. There are also documents showing the property was sold through GPA (general power of attorney),” said a police officer.
Police are looking for the current owner who was allegedly trying to convert the house into a PG accommodation. “We are checking the documents and will soon identify the owner,” said the DCP.
The South MCD had booked the property for unauthorised construction. A notice was also issued on March 31 and the authorities had sought police intervention.
An officer at South Campus police station said: “We have written to the SDMC seeking details of the owner as no document has his name. Before the incident, they had informed us once about the construction. There was no further communication from their side. Under the DMC Act, the authorities were supposed to book the owner but they have only mentioned the house number in their order…”
A senior South MCD official, however, said police should have taken action when they notified them of the illegal construction in the building. “We identify buildings where illegal construction is done. The building is booked in such cases, not people,” said the official.
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