Seventeen people were killed and 13 injured when the ground-plus-four-storey Sai Siddhi building in Ghatkopar came crashing down on July 25
In what could prove to be the final nail in the coffin for Sunil Shitap, a Shiv Sena strongman arrested in the Sai Siddhi Ghatkopar building collapse case, the Kalina Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) has tested samples of the debris from the collapse site and concluded that the material used to construct the building was of sound quality, and that the building was not in a dilapidated state.
The report will bolster the police's case that the cause of the building collapse was illegal alterations carried out by Shitap on the ground floor, and could dent his lawyer's claims that the building was already in a dilapidated state.
Seventeen people were killed and 13 injured when the ground-plus-four-storey Sai Siddhi building in Ghatkopar came crashing down on July 25. Shitap was arrested for allegedly making structural alterations on the ground floor of the building without permission from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. The Parksite police submitted the debris samples from the site to the FSL and sought a report.
"After we get the samples, we conduct various scientific tests to ascertain whether the proportion of materials like cement, sand, bricks and iron used to construct the building are in the right proportion. A study of the debris samples revealed that the building was constructed using the right proportion of materials. Also, the building was not constructed with inferior quality material, nor was it dilapidated," said an FSL official.
"Another detailed examination of samples will be conducted, after which an in-depth report will be submitted to the police. It could be used as evidence in court," said Kalina FSL Director, Dr KV Kulkarni.
A senior police officer, privy to the investigation, said, "Once the FSL report indicates that the building was not built with inferior quality construction material and neither was it dilapidated, Shitap will not be able to take the defence that it was not illegal alterations, but the dilapidated condition of the building that led to its collapse."
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 "Ghatkopar Building Collapse")
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