Serbia's former Minister of Construction Goran Vesic and ten others were arrested on November 21 in connection with the collapse of a railway station canopy in Novi Sad earlier this month, which killed 15 people and seriously injured two others.

The November 1 tragedy has sparked widespread protests in Serbia, with opposition leaders and citizens accusing the government of corruption and negligence in overseeing public infrastructure projects. Demonstrations have continued for weeks, demanding accountability for what many consider a preventable disaster.

Prosecutors in Novi Sad confirmed the arrests, stating that the suspects face a range of charges, from serious offences against public security to improper execution of construction works. Four individuals are charged with causing public danger, a crime punishable by up to 12 years in prison.

Vesic, who oversaw the railway station renovation during his tenure, denied being formally arrested. "I voluntarily appeared before investigators to help clarify all circumstances of the Novi Sad incident," he wrote on social media.

The arrested include engineers from the French company Egis, which supervised the renovation, and employees of the CIP Traffic Institute, the station’s design firm. Ljiljana Milic Markovic, the station’s chief designer, is among those in custody.

The renovation of the Novi Sad railway station began in 2021 and was declared complete in 2022 during an election campaign, though additional works continued until July 2024. The project, part of a broader Chinese-led overhaul of Serbia’s rail infrastructure, was touted at the time as meeting “European standards”.

The collapse of the recently renovated concrete canopy has drawn attention to alleged mismanagement and poor government oversight. Local media revealed that key documentation regarding the renovation has been classified, fuelling suspicions of corruption and cover-ups.

The disaster has led to high-level resignations, including those of Jelena Tanaskovic, the acting director of Serbian railway infrastructure, and trade minister Tomislav Momirovic, who previously headed the construction ministry. Vesic resigned from his post as construction minister on November 5, just days after the incident.

The tragedy has ignited anti-government demonstrations in Belgrade and Novi Sad, with protesters blockading the Novi Sad city court for two consecutive days this week. Riot police were deployed to secure the court on Tuesday, clashing with opposition leaders and local councillors demanding transparency in the investigation.

Public outrage over the incident reflects growing concerns about infrastructure oversight in Serbia, with opposition leaders calling for systemic reforms to prevent further tragedies. As investigations continue, the arrests mark a critical step in addressing public demands for accountability, but the fallout from the disaster underscores deeper public discontent with the government.