Rahul Gandhi meets Satya Niketan collapse victim's kin, flags lack of government hostels

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday met the family of a student from Madhya Pradesh who died in the Satya Niketan building collapse in Delhi during his 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' programme here, and blamed the tragic incident on the shortage of government hostels.

Rahul Gandhi meets family of Satya Niketan victim

A multi-storey building housing paying guest accommodation collapsed in Delhi's Satya Niketan area on September 6, killing seven people, including students, and injuring seven others.

Among those killed was 21-year-old Arpit Jaj, a native of Dewas in Madhya Pradesh.

Gandhi invited Jaj's family on stage during his youth outreach programme 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' in Indore.

Arpit's elder sister Priyanshi said, "Innocent people are losing their lives due to the irresponsible attitude of a failed system. Was it my brother's fault that he was living in an expensive PG accommodation away from his hometown for higher education?"

Family alleges lack of action

Expressing grief and anger, Priyanshi said no strict action had been taken even 13 days after the building, which she alleged had been constructed illegally, collapsed.

Arpit's father, who works as a taxi driver, said in a choked voice that his son had big dreams which remained unfulfilled.

Gandhi said the Satya Niketan incident was the result of inadequate government infrastructure in the education sector.

"If there had been adequate hostels in the government sector and the education budget had not been cut, this incident would never have happened," he said.

Arpit had arrived in Delhi a day earlier

According to the family, Arpit left his hometown Dewas for Delhi on September 5 after celebrating Raksha Bandhan and Janmashtami.

The building in Satya Niketan collapsed a few hours after his arrival, killing him. The family lost contact with him after the incident and his body was identified on September 7.

The family also alleged that they faced considerable difficulty in locating Arpit's body.