NHAI Officials and Minister Singh Booked Post Shimla Building Collapse

Shimla, Jul 2 (PTI): The repercussions of a five-storey building collapse in Shimla’s Bhatta Kuffar area have intensified, leading to the booking of two National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) officials on Wednesday. Residents have leveled allegations against them, citing endangerment of life and intentional harm.

This development follows an earlier case against Himachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj Minister Anirudh Singh. He faces charges of wrongful restraint and voluntarily causing hurt after supposedly assaulting the two NHAI officials during a site inspection of the building collapse.

The FIR against Minister Singh resulted from a complaint by NHAI employee Achal Jindal, a project manager for a four-lane road initiative in Shimla. Jindal alleged that he and site engineer Yogesh were summoned by Singh and subsequently subjected to physical assault.

The fallout didn't end there. On Tuesday, a case was initiated following accusations by the building’s owner and others, who blamed NHAI negligence and the four-laning project for the building’s collapse and resultant damage to nearby structures.

Two additional complaints were logged on Wednesday against NHAI officials after eight residents from Bhata Kuffar, including affected homeowners and Chamiyana Panchayat's ward member, Nihal Thakur, filed grievances.

One particular case invoked sections 126 (2) for wrongful restraint, 125 for acts endangering life, 352 for intentional hurt, and 3 (5) under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Complainants Anil Kumar, Het Ram, Giri Thakur, K R Mehta, Anil Verma, Sohan Thakur, Rajesh Thakur, and Ashok Rajta implicated Jindal, citing obstruction in meeting Minister Singh and aggressive behavior, including twisting a resident’s arm and using inappropriate language.

Furthermore, Nihal Thakur filed allegations against Jindal and site engineer Yogesh for improper conduct and physical assault, prompting another case under sections 126 (2), 352, and 3 (5) of the BNS.

The building, located at Mathu Colony en route to Chamiyana Super Speciality Hospital, collapsed on Monday but fortunately, resulted in no casualties.

Yashpal Verma, deputy chief of Chamiyana gram panchayat, revealed that cracks appeared in the building last year. At the time, the construction company working on the Kaithlighat-Dhalli four-lane road assured them of the structure's safety.

Verma attributed the collapse to the construction company's negligence, asserting that the panchayat had advised the company to halt work, highlighting how it was endangering surrounding buildings.

A previous case based on building owner Ranjana Verma's complaint accused the NHAI and the construction company of negligence under sections 125 (acts endangering life) and 324(4) for mischief causing damage, per the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

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