The collapse of a four-storey building in a congested locality in East Delhi in which 66 people were killed fuelled a blame game between the Delhi Govt and the MCD on what led to the worst such disaster in recent times.

The owner of the four-storeyed building which collapsed in east Delhi was arrested on Tuesday evening, police said. Amritpal Singh, 55, was arrested from Geeta Colony around 7 pm, a senior police official said.

He had fled from the Laxmi Nagar area soon after the building collapsed in Lalita Park complex on Monday night.

A case of culpable homicide was registered against Singh late Monday night. Singh had at least 21 cases registered against him. He was arrested 20 times earlier.

The cases included those of violation of excise act, violation of essential commodities and receiving stolen properties.

Meanwhile, as rescue workers scrambled to find survivors in tonnes of debris strewn around in a congested locality, family members ran from pillar to post trying to find their near and dear ones.

The death toll in the collapse which also left 74 injured rose to 66 after 24 bodies were retrieved on Tuesday.

“66 people have died and about 73 are injured and admitted to various hospitals of the capital with a major chunk being at the LNJP,” police and hospital officials said.

In May 2008, 17 construction workers were killed when a wall collapsed at a construction site in Delhi.

41 bodies have been taken to Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital (LNJP), 16 to Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital, six to Hedgewar Hospital and three to Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, officials said.

Of the 66 dead, 27 were females, they said, adding 16 children were among the victims.

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has sought a report from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on the mishap.

Over 60 families, mostly labourers from West Bengal, were living in the cramped quarters of the 15-year-old building, where an illegal fifth floor was under construction.

The entire structure came crashing down around 8.15 PM on Monday at Lalita Park in Laxmi Nagar.

Around 30-40 people have been rescued since Monday night and it is difficult to say whether more people are trapped inside, police and fire officials said.

A blame-game has erupted between Delhi Government and MCD with Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit directly putting the onus on the civic body for the building collapse and the BJP-ruled agency denying the charge.

Holding MCD responsible for the incident, Dikshit said the builder should not have been allowed to construct floors beyond permissible level and the quality of the building should also have been examined.

MCD Standing Committee Chairman and BJP leader Yogender Chandolia, however, sought to blame the Delhi government’s Flood and Irrigation Department over accumulation of water at the basement of the building that collapsed.

Most of the victims remained unidentified but belonged to migrant Bihari and Bengali labourer families.

The Delhi Government announced an ex-gratia of Rs two lakh each to the families of those killed and Rs one lakh to the injured.

Dikshit and Lieutenant Governor Tejindra Khanna, who visited the site of the building collapse in Lakshmi Nagar, said strict action would be taken against those found guilty in the incident.