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Delhi Building Collapse Toll Rises as Courts Hear Cases
A building where students lived collapsed in Delhi while repair work was happening.
Seven people have died, 11 have been rescued, and many more may still be under the rubble.
The building owner was arrested, and five city officials were suspended.
Police are investigating whether carelessness caused the collapse.
In another case, a court summoned journalist Sudhir Chaudhary and Doordarshan News over alleged insulting comments about a protest participant.
A journalist named Abhishek Upadhyay is also challenging a police request for information from X. His lawyers say the request may have been intended to identify his reporting sources.
Separately, a court refused anticipatory bail to YouTuber Ajeet Bharti over alleged casteist and derogatory remarks about politician Chandra Shekhar Aazad.
The death toll in Delhi’s Satya Niketan building collapse rose to seven, with 11 people rescued and 30 to 35 students feared trapped.
The five-storey, 40-to-50-year-old building was being used as student paying guest accommodation when it collapsed during basement repairs.
The building owner was arrested in Rajasthan, while five municipal officials were suspended and a culpable homicide and negligence case was registered.
The Delhi High Court summoned journalist Sudhir Chaudhary and Doordarshan News over alleged defamatory comments about civil services aspirant Vikram Sherawat.
Courts also examined police requests for journalist Abhishek Upadhyay’s social-media data and rejected YouTuber Ajeet Bharti’s anticipatory-bail petition.
- Who
- People affected by the Satya Niketan collapse, the building owner, municipal officials, journalists Sudhir Chaudhary and Abhishek Upadhyay, YouTuber Ajeet Bharti, and politician Chandra Shekhar Aazad.
- What
- A Delhi building collapse and several court proceedings involving alleged negligence, defamation, police access to social-media data, and allegedly casteist remarks.
- Where
- The collapse occurred in Satya Niketan, Delhi. The related proceedings involved courts in Delhi and Ghaziabad police, with the building owner arrested in Bhiwadi, Rajasthan.
- When
- The building collapsed on Sunday afternoon; the other court actions were reported in the same roundup, with the cited broadcasts and protests occurring in July and August.
- Why
- The collapse is being investigated because repair work was underway in an old building. The court cases concern alleged defamatory or casteist statements and a police request for digital information.
Accusations and challenges
Defenses and legal scrutiny
Alleged defamation of Vikram Sherawat
Accusations and challenges
Sherawat alleged that Sudhir Chaudhary described him as an “anti-national” and accused him of calling for Parliament’s destruction and a Nepal-like situation in India.
Defenses and legal scrutiny
The Delhi High Court summoned Chaudhary and Doordarshan News in the defamation case; the report does not state their substantive response.
Police request for Abhishek Upadhyay’s data
Accusations and challenges
Upadhyay’s counsel argued that police sought information from X to identify his journalistic sources and harass him after his reporting on alleged donation embezzlement at the Ram temple in Ayodhya.
Defenses and legal scrutiny
The police sought information in connection with a road-rage case, while the Supreme Court directed the Ghaziabad police commissioner to explain the request and questioned why a person’s “digital footsteps” were needed.
Remarks about Chandra Shekhar Aazad
Accusations and challenges
The Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) alleged that Ajeet Bharti made caste-based, abusive, humiliating, sexually degrading, and potentially inflammatory statements about Aazad and B. R. Ambedkar.
Defenses and legal scrutiny
Bharti sought anticipatory bail, but the Delhi court rejected the petition, holding that it was not maintainable.
Key facts
- Collapse death toll
- Seven people had died, according to the report.
- Rescued
- Eleven people had been rescued.
- Potentially trapped
- An estimated 30 to 35 students were believed to be trapped under the rubble.
- Building condition
- The five-storey structure was reportedly 40 to 50 years old.
- Legal action after collapse
- The owner faced a case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder and negligence; five municipal officials were suspended.
- Defamation damages sought
- Vikram Sherawat sought Rs 5 crore from Sudhir Chaudhary, Essprit Productions, and Doordarshan News.
- Anticipatory bail
- A Delhi court rejected Ajeet Bharti’s anticipatory-bail petition in the case concerning remarks about Chandra Shekhar Aazad.
Sources
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