Police prepare 100-page chargesheet against 10 accused in Metro pillar collapse case

BENGALURU: Sixty days after a Metro pillar mishap incident near Nagawara, the Govindapura police have prepared a 100-page chargesheet against 10 officials who were engaged in the construction of the Metro reinforcement cage. According to sources, the chargesheet names site engineers, site in-charge, the Metro contractor and BMRCL officials. The chargesheet will be submitted in court soon.

The chargesheet highlights the negligence of the site engineers during the construction of the Metro reinforcement cage without taking any safety precautions. The cage collapsed due to poor joints in the middle and the 18-metre-tall pillar was erected as a single unit using steel rods and cement support, which is the major reason for it to break in the middle. The height of the pillar was more than required at that stage, the chargesheet says.

The couple was on the way to work when the Metro pillar which was under construction, crashed.

An expert report from IIT Hyderabad revealed that the main reason for the collapse of the reinforcement cage was the negligence of the authorities and this was also established during questioning of the accused, the chargesheet mentions.

On January 10, Tejaswini and her 2.5-year-old son Vihan died after an under-construction Metro pillar fell on their two-wheeler. The Metro pillar was being constructed on the road from Kalyan Nagar to HRBR Layout. Tejaswini’s husband Lohith and daughter escaped unhurt.