Jodhpur: Police Sunday arrested five people, including three officials of Rajasthan State Road Development and Construction Corporation Ltd (RSRDC) and two persons associated with an electrical contracting firm, in connection with alleged irregularities in the construction of the Rajasthan High Court’s new building here.The accused were identified as Rameshwar Dayal Khandelwal (59) and Gopal Lal Khandelwal (54), both from Jaipur, and RSRDC officials Jitendra Sharma (55), Naveen Chandra K Rai (67) and Rajesh Purohit(65), all from Jodhpur.A police officer said a case was registered in 2024 following complaints of alleged deficiencies in the construction of the High Court building. The three RSRDC officials were responsible for different aspects of the project during construction, while Khandelwal and his associate, the proprietor and project director of the electrical contracting firm, were involved as contractors.According to a written complaint by Sharad Joshi, an employee posted in the Court Officer Cell of the Rajasthan High Court, construction of the new building at Jhalamand was undertaken by RSRDC in 2008 and completed in Dec 2019 at an estimated cost of around Rs 220 crore.Questions about the quality of construction and structural and other deficiencies reportedly arose soon after the building was handed over. Several incidents subsequently highlighted alleged problems, prompting scrutiny of its construction and maintenance.The High Court has also taken cognisance of the issue and expressed displeasure over the slow pace of the investigation. It sought responses from the police and concerned depts and directed the director general of the Special Operations Group (SOG) to ensure strict action in accordance with law if any official or other person was found responsible for deficiencies in the construction.The court has directed that a detailed progress report on the investigation be submitted on Sept 15.
