Building collapse: Toll rises to 14; owners arrested; BJP may cash in on tragedy

Dharwad, Mar 22: The Dharwad building collapse death toll mounted to 14 on Friday after one more body was found from the debris as the rescue operation continued for the fourth consecutive day.

FIR has been registered against building owners, Ravi Basavaraj Sabarad, Basavaraj D Nigadi, Gangappa S Shintri, Mahabaleshwar Puradagudi and engineer Vivek Pawar. All four owners have surrendered before the police and the engineer has been taken into police custody.

Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy visited the site on Thursday and told the media that several people were suspected to be trapped under the rubble.

He said the district administration has already announced a magisterial inquiry and the government is ready to appoint a retired high court judge if required.

A Sub Divisional Executive Magistrate said the toll has risen to 14.

On Wednesday, the Indian Air Force airlifted two teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to Karnataka's Hubli from Hindon in Uttar Pradesh to join the rescue and search operation after an under-construction building collapsed in Kumareshwar Nagar in Dharwad on Tuesday.

The operation is being conducted jointly by the NDRF and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF).

BJP to cash in?

The tragedy may take political colour as the father-in-law of former Congress minister, Vinay Kulkarni is one of its owners and his wife and daughter performed the pooja at its ground-breaking ceremony.

The photograph of the event has circulated in the media and it’s believed BJP MP, Pralhad Joshi may use it to attack Mr Kulkarni, who is likely to be fielded from Dharwad this Lok Sabha poll, as his father-in-law, Gangappa Sinthri, against whom a case has been registered, has not been detained two days after the incident.

The decision to institute a magisterial probe into the incident has not gone down well with BJP leaders, who are demanding an investigation by a retired judge. “The completion certificate is given unscrupulously by Hub—balli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation. An inquiry should be conducted into whether the authorities had inspected the venue and cleared all formalities before giving permission for construction. The probe should be conducted by a retired district judge and stringent action should be taken against the building owners and engineers,” Mr Joshi said.