The toll in the building collapse in Karnataka’s Dharwad rose to at least 14 on Friday, ANI reported. Four owners and an architect have been arrested in connection with the incident. The rescue operation is still underway for the fourth straight day.
A 24-year-old man came out of the debris after four days, The Hindu reported. A couple was also rescued on Friday. They have been taken to hospital. Three more people are believed to be trapped under the debris, according to ANI.
The investigating team tracked down the architect, Vivek Pawar, from Kolhapur early on Friday, reported The News Minute. The owners of the building – Ravi Basavaraj Sabarad, Basavaraj D Nigadi, Gangappa S Shintri and Mahabaleshwar Puradagudi – also surrendered to police.
Gangappa Shintri is the father-in-law of former Congress MLA Vinay Kulkarni. On Tuesday, Kulkarni had said that his relative was one of the building’s owners and that all those found guilty should be penalised.
The five persons were booked under Sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) and 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life) of the Indian Penal Code.
The owners told police that Pawar had “assured them that there were no structural defects”, Deputy Commissioner of Police Nagesh was quoted as saying.
On Thursday, Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy’s office said 53 people had been rescued, three of whom are in a critical condition.
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