Construction Firm Owner Arrested In Gurugram Building Collapse That Killed 2

The police here on Wednesday made its first arrest in connection with the Chintels Paradiso building collapse that killed two people in February, taking into custody the proprietor of a firm involved in repair work.

Ajay Austin, proprietor of Manish Switchgear and Construction, will be produced in a city court on Thursday, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Udyog Vihar, Manoj Kumar said.

Two women were killed when the dining room floor of a sixth-floor apartment of Tower D at Chintels Paradiso in Sector 109 came down on February 10, triggering the collapse of roofs and floors directly under it, till the first floor.

Around a month ago, a magisterial inquiry had found retrofitting in flat D 603 as the key trigger for the collapse and held both Chintels India and Manish Switchgear and Construction responsible for the same.

Probing the matter on the basis of the magisterial inquiry report, a special investigation team (SIT) led by ACP Kumar had called Ajay Austin to join the investigation on Wednesday. He was arrested later.

"We have arrested Ajay Austin, director of the Manish Switchgear and Constructions, and are questioning him. He will be produced in a city court tomorrow," the ACP said.

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