Kiran Bedi Moves Delhi HC Over Satya Niketan Collapse That Killed Seven

Retired IPS officer Kiran Bedi on Thursday approached the Delhi High Court seeking to be made a party in proceedings concerning the collapse of a hostel building at Satya Niketan that claimed seven lives.

Bedi, who also served as the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry, sought to intervene in the matter, stating that she intended to assist the court in examining issues arising from the incident.

A bench comprising Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia considered her plea. Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma, appearing for the Centre, Delhi government and Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), opposed the application and sought time to file objections.

The bench questioned the opposition, observing that Bedi was a conscientious citizen with considerable administrative experience and that the matter involved larger public interest.

The court said Bedi's long administrative experience could be utilised while hearing the matter and asked the authorities not to view her intervention in an adversarial manner.

Sharma said he held Bedi in “great esteem” but submitted that her application appeared to pre-judge the issue, as the authorities were yet to file their status reports on the building collapse.

The high court granted the authorities three days to file their replies to Bedi's plea and directed that the application be heard along with the main matter on September 25.

The Satya Niketan building, which housed a boys' paying-guest accommodation near Delhi University's South Campus, collapsed on September 6 while repair work was underway. Seven people were killed and several others injured in the incident.

On September 7, the high court ordered a high-level MCD inquiry into the collapse and said the government could not evade responsibility.

The court also expressed concern over inadequate housing facilities, including hostels run by Delhi University and the government, as well as student safety and regulation of PG facilities by the MCD and other authorities.