A day after the 13th century Lal Mahal in Nizamuddin was found partially demolished by builders, sources in the Union ministry of

culture and tourism told STOI that the police and MCD had been alerted to the danger it faced as early as October 21. Their failure to take action points to the complicity of local officials, as suspected by experts on Friday.

The shocking revelation came even as the police, acting on the complaint of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), finally registered a case and claimed to have begun "investigations". However, no arrests had been made till late in the night. The monument is located right behind Nizamuddin police station. The case was registered under various sections of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958. Union minister for tourism and culture Ambika Soni will visit the site on Monday and chief minister Sheila Dikshit may accompany her, said sources.

In a strongly-worded report to the ministry, the ASI blamed the police and MCD for failing to prevent the demolition. "It came to the notice of a senior conservation assistant that a private party had started covering with tin sheets the area near the Bara Khamba monument which is centrally protected, possibly with the ulterior motive of demolishing an old historical building," said a ministry source. "We have learnt that the builder is not in the country. The ASI on its own cannot protect heritage structures without the assistance of local bodies and the police," the source added.

ASI assistant director-general Vijay S Madan confirmed that the builder is not in the country. He said: "The monument is located in a prohibited area and no activity like construction or demolition is allowed. Our officers had seen the tin sheets coming up here nearly two weeks ago and lodged a complaint with the local police. The MCD was also alerted. ASI does not have physical jurisdiction like MCD and the latter is duty-bound to tell any person engaging in construction activity to get an NOC from us. This was not done in this case."

When a TOI team visited the site on Saturday afternoon, it faced a hostile crowd. Agitated locals did not allow anyone to go near the monument which has been "sealed" by Delhi Police. A notice has been pasted at the gate of the structure, forbidding further construction activity without the approval of ASI and MCD.

"It's a private passage leading to the monument. We are being victimized by the government," said one of the residents. Some residents claimed the construction work was actually for building a masjid and they were not aware that the razed structures had heritage value.

The area has been barricaded by the police from two sides and additional forces have been deployed. The local police said there has been tension in the area after the demolition work was stopped. DCP (south-east) Ajay Chaudhary said: "We have registered a case and are investigating and the culprits will soon be brought to book. Some of the suspects who carried out the demolition have been rounded up for questioning. We are also trying to locate the owner of the building."

The authorities are now working on damage control. "Our focus right now is to ensure that what's left of the Mahal remains intact and no further damage is inflicted on it,"