The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it would examine on September 10 whether the issues arising from the Satya Niketan building collapse in Delhi should be taken up by the top court, potentially bringing the case under its ongoing pan-India proceedings.A bench of Justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and R Mahadevan was hearing a plea seeking urgent intervention after the five-storey building housing a boys’ paying guest accommodation collapsed near Delhi University‘s South Campus on Sunday. Seven students were killed and five others were injured.The court noted that the Delhi high court was already dealing with the incident but said the issues raised appeared to overlap with a broader case before the Supreme Court concerning unauthorised construction, fire safety and illegal conversion of residential properties for commercial use.“We have something in mind. We will consider this issue day-after-tomorrow. This is a serious issue. The issues dealt with by the high court are overlapping with one considered by this court on pan-India basis,” the bench said.
Supreme Court weighs taking over proceedings
Senior advocate Ajit Sinha, who is serving as amicus curiae in the Supreme Court matter, told the bench that he had inspected the collapse site along with an IIT professor and MCD officials following the incident.He also placed a status report before the court and urged it to hear the matter urgently so that directions could be issued.The Supreme Court has previously issued several directions to authorities concerning unauthorised construction in residential areas, fire safety and the conversion of residential properties into commercial establishments in violation of rules.
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Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Delhi government, informed the bench that the Delhi High Court was already hearing a PIL on the incident and placed its Monday order on record.He described the collapse as “most unfortunate” and said, “Our heart goes out to the children and the parents”.
High court orders MCD inquiry
The Delhi high court on Monday ordered a high-level inquiry by the MCD into the collapse and said the government could not escape responsibility.The court described the incident as “most unfortunate” and said such tragedies were linked to inadequate measures by the MCD and other authorities.The rescue operation at the site ended after more than 27 hours on Monday, with seven people dead and five injured. Police arrested the building owner, his wife and son, while five MCD officials were suspended.The building collapsed at around 1.30 pm on Sunday. The incident has since raised questions over building safety, unauthorised construction and the enforcement of rules in residential areas.
