Delhi court acquits 27-year-old ceiling collapse case accused

NEW DELHI: The Karkardooma Court acquitted a man accused in a 27-year-old case concerning death and injuries caused by negligence. The case relates to a ceiling collapse during construction work on a house in the Bhajanpura area in September 1999. It took 27 years for Shiv Dutt to be acquitted. Now unable to walk, he was represented in court by his grandson, who attended the hearing on the date of the judgement, according to news agency ANI. An FIR was lodged on September 16, 1999, following a complaint by Murari Lal Sharma, one of the injured. During the trial, one of the prosecution witnesses turned hostile, and others failed to support the prosecution’s case. Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) Pankaj Rai acquitted Shiv Dutt, noting that the prosecution failed to prove that the incident resulting in death and injuries was caused by his negligence.

"As such, the prosecution has failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt the charges against the accused under Sections 337, 338, and 34 IPC," the judgement stated. Shiv Dutt, the owner of the house, had given the contract for its repair to Shahzad, also known as Bhura, who passed away during the trial. While acquitting Shiv Dutt, the court noted that the prosecution witnesses did not prove that the injuries were directly caused by the accused’s rash or negligent acts.

"It is observed that he was not responsible for repairing or maintenance of the said building after engaging an independent contractor for carrying out the repair work. The contractor had special knowledge of construction work without interference from the accused," JMFC Pankaj Rai said in the judgement dated February 20. The court further noted that there was no expert opinion or structural engineer report on record to suggest that Shiv Dutt had prior knowledge of the building’s structural weakness.

Most of the prosecution witnesses were purely formal in nature. Prosecution witness Jai Prakash, a neighbour of the accused, also turned hostile during the trial. The court concluded that it could not be said beyond reasonable doubt that the incident occurred due to the accused’s negligence. None of the facts on record showed that the death or injuries were caused by Shiv Dutt’s actions."In fact, accused Shiv Dutt cannot be held responsible for any rash and negligent act of the contractor, if any.

Like the other offences charged in this case, there is also no material on record to show that there existed a common intention on the part of accused Shiv Dutt to commit the offence with co-accused Shahzad (since expired)," the judgement added. The court directed the Delhi Legal Services Authority (DLSA) to compensate the victims, stating that the State still bears responsibility to provide justice and compensation."In fact, the injured and family members of the deceased are entitled to compensation under the Delhi Victim Compensation Scheme. The matter is referred to the Learned Secretary, DLSA, North East, to consider compensation for the victims/dependents/family members, as applicable, under the Delhi Victim Compensation Scheme and award them suitable compensation as per rules," JMFC Rai ordered. The incident occurred on September 16, 1999, around 10:00 a.m.,

when the ceiling of a house in Arjun Gali, Maujpur, Delhi, collapsed, trapping 15–20 labourers underneath. On arrival, police found a large crowd, and the injured had already been taken to GTB Hospital by PCR vans and CATs ambulance. The victims—Murari Lal, Ashok, Anil, Mahesh, Ilyas, Deepak, and Om Prakash—were injured, while Wahid died. Investigations revealed that Shiv Dutt had assigned the construction of the first-floor roof to co-accused Shahzad (since expired). During the lifting of the lenter, it collapsed onto the labourers. Seven were injured, and one person lost their life. Advocate DD Pandey, representing Shiv Dutt, argued that the prosecution witnesses did not support their case and that there was no material evidence to convict the accused.