A Delhi court on Thursday rejected the anticipatory bail plea of the operator of the Satya Niketan PG, Shubham Tyagi, days after a multi-storey building being used as a paying guest (PG) accommodation came crashing down in the national capital, claiming lives of seven people.
Additional Sessions Judge Saurabh Pratap Singh Laler of the Patiala House Court dismissed Tyagi’s plea for pre-arrest bail as the probe into the September 6 incident remained in progress.
Tyagi is on the run, while his business partner and co-operator Sudhanshu was arrested on Wednesday morning. The duo had reportedly taken the property on lease in August 2025 and were operating the boys’ PG accommodation together.
Tyagi’s whereabouts remain unknown
The police action comes amid growing scrutiny over the circumstances surrounding the collapse. Earlier, the cops had laid hands on labour contractor Sanoj, who was allegedly supervising repair work in the basement when the building crashed. As per reports, the repair activity is suspected to have played a key role in weakening the structure.
The incident occurred on September 6 this year in Satya Niketan, a student-dominated neighbourhood located near Delhi University’s (DU) South Campus. The building being used as a private boys’ hostel came crashing down, killing seven people, including two labourers.
A visual from the site after the building collapsed
Apart from the labourers, five students enrolled at the DU were killed too, elevating the tragedy to one of the capital’s most serious and recent building collapse incidents.
Incident marks 5th building collapse in Delhi this year
The Satya Niketan building collapse is reportedly the fifth such incident in the city this year, following which, the overall death toll from building collapse tragedies in Delhi has risen to 16, according to statistics and police statements cited by news agency PTI.
According to official statistics, 16 deaths were recorded across three major incidents; six people were killed in a collapse in Saket in May, three died in Rohini in July, and seven lost their lives in the Satya Niketan tragedy on September 6.
Unauthorised construction under scanner
Another still from the site
Officials have pointed to several recurring factors behind building collapses in Delhi, some of which include unregulated and unauthorised construction, illegal additional floors, ageing structures and inadequate structural assessments.
They added that repair and renovation works can raise the risks of a building collapse when proper safety precautions are not enforced. In the Satya Niketan case, the officials are examining the work allegedly being carried out in the basement just before the collapse.
Monsoon conditions may also compound structural vulnerabilities, as water damage potentially affects foundations, walls and basements.