Delhi Police have arrested the owner of the five-storey boys’ paying guest (PG) accommodation that collapsed in Delhi’s Satya Niketan area on Sunday, 6th September. He has been identified as Hariram Bansal and was picked up from Bhiwadi in Rajasthan, near the Haryana border on Monday, 7th September. He is currently being questioned by the police.
Delhi's Satya Niketan building collapse | The alleged owner of the building, Hariram (with face mask) has been apprehended in Bhiwadi.
— ANI (@ANI) September 7, 2026
(Source: Delhi Police) https://t.co/kgIfWdWXYV pic.twitter.com/IapaVRAd8A
A case was registered against Bansal after Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta ordered a magisterial inquiry into the incident. The FIR was filed under Sections 105, 290 and 125(a) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which deal with culpable homicide not amounting to murder, negligence related to construction or repair of buildings, and acts that endanger life or personal safety.
Five MCD officials suspended
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has also suspended five officials from its South Zone with immediate effect. The action came as rescue teams continued their search operation at the site for the second straight day on Monday.
The MCD had identified the building as P-14 Satya Niketan. The property stood on a plot of around 55 square yards and had a basement along with the ground and four upper floors. According to the civic body, the building was constructed in the 1990s.
The MCD report said, “No record of booking or sealing available, no complaints received of any work in this property.” The civic body has also ordered that all illegal constructions having more than four floors be “immediately sealed”.
Rescue operations continue
The building, known as Hostel Daze, was being used as a boys’ PG and housed several Delhi University students. It was located near Delhi University’s South Campus and opposite Sri Venkateswara College.
Police said repair and renovation work was being carried out on the ground floor when the building collapsed at around 1:30 pm on Sunday. According to the latest update from AIIMS Trauma Centre, 10 patients were brought to the hospital, of whom six were declared dead on arrival, and one later died from injuries.
The preliminary investigation is focusing on the renovation work being carried out before the collapse and the condition of the decades-old building. Officials are also looking into reports of work in the basement, including whether excavation or water accumulation may have weakened the structure.
