Delhi building collapse: Supreme Court rejects urgent writ of plea to demolish adjoining structure
The Delhi High Court on September 14 refused to entertain a plea raising concerns over the MCD’s decision to demolish a building adjacent to the Satya Niketan hostel that collapsed last week. File | Photo credit: The Hindu
The Delhi High Court on Monday (September 14, 2026) refused to entertain a plea challenging the MCD’s decision to demolish a building adjacent to the Satya Niketan hostel that collapsed last week.
The lawyer told a Bench of Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia that the authorities continued the demolition without removing the debris from the basement of the hostel and some people may still be trapped. The lawyer mentioned the matter for urgent discussion.
The court noted that the authorities had to conduct an audit before demolishing the adjoining building and asked the lawyer not to file the proposal “in mid-air”.
“What is the source of the information that there are persons under the rubble? How do you know that? They must have done some kind of technical audit before they decided to demolish the adjacent building. It is only your assumption that there might be some people there. You should have some basis for making such submissions,” the court told the lawyer.
The bench said the application would be listed gradually and added, “What is so urgent? You should not file a petition in the air. What technical information is available to you?” A building at Satya Niketan, which housed accommodation for fee-paying boys near Delhi University’s South Campus, collapsed on September 6 while repairs were underway.
On September 7, the Supreme Court ordered a high-level probe by the MCD into the Satya Niketan building collapse incident that left seven dead, making it clear that the government cannot shirk responsibility.
She said the incident was not only unfortunate but also raised deep concern over the inadequate accommodation facilities, including hostels run by Delhi University or the government, the safety and security of students and the less than adequate measures used by the MCD and other authorities to regulate such PG facilities.
On September 8, the civic authority began a controlled demolition of a building adjacent to the collapsed hostel after it was deemed unsafe.
The building housed paying guest accommodation for girls and was evacuated after the collapse of a neighboring five-storey building.
Published – September 14, 2026 12:19 PM IST