Indore building collapse: Tenant claims he had warned landlord about imminent danger

Indore, Sep 23 (PTI) The landlord had been warned a week ago about the dilapidated condition of the three-storey building in Ranipura here that collapsed on Monday night, claiming two lives, a tenant claimed on Tuesday.

Two members of a family died in the incident while 12 injured persons were pulled out from the debris, according to officials.

Three front rooms of the building were rented out while 22 members of landlord Sammu Ansari's family occupied the rest of the building, located in a densely populated area.

One of the rooms was rented by electrical goods businessman Shashank Gupta who used it as a warehouse.

"Eight days ago, after seeing the condition of the building, I told Ansari twice or thrice that it could collapse any moment, and he should be careful. The shutter of my warehouse had slid down on its own, which alerted me," Gupta told PTI as he visited the spot on Tuesday.

As the landlord ignored his warning, he rented two warehouses elsewhere and moved 70 percent of his goods there, Gupta added.

"If it had not rained on Monday, I would have moved the remaining goods too," he said, adding that he had already decided to vacate the warehouse.

Rainwater flowing down the Jawahar Marg which entered the basement and burrowing by rats caused the building's foundation to weaken over a period of time, Gupta said.

Mohammad Amil Ansari, who lives nearby, also said that the landlord had been warned by the tenants about the danger.

"Eight members of Ansari's family were outside at the time of the collapse. Had they been inside, the tragedy could have been even worse," he said.

A five-hour rescue operation ended early Tuesday morning, officials said, adding that the 12 injured persons have been admitted to the Government-run Maharaja Yashwantrao Hospital in the city.

The deceased were identified as Alifa (20) and Fahimuddin Ansari alias Fahim (40).

Police as well as the administration are conducting detailed investigations, they said. PTI HWP MAS KRK