MQM-P urges PM to form inquiry commission to probe incident
Gul Plaza fire incident
KARACHI: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) on Saturday urged Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to constitute a high-level inquiry commission to hold those accountable whose negligence led to the Gul Plaza inferno.
Addressing a press conference in Karachi, MQM-P leader Farooq Sattar said the citizens of Karachi had “questions of a very serious nature regarding the responsibilities of the Sindh government in this incident”, as well as those of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) and the mayor.
He called for an “independent judicial inquiry” into the Gul Plaza tragedy to ensure the truth comes to light. Sattar questioned what the “fear and obstruction” was in setting up a judicial commission. “Incapability, mistake, apathy, shamelessness, impudence — these should be exposed,” Sattar demanded.
Sattar further demanded that the top officials of various departments be included in the commission, echoing a letter written by MQM-P Convener Khalid Maqbool to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday.
In a letter dated January 23, Maqbool Siddiqui called on the premier to notify a “high-powered independent, transparent, and impartial commission of inquiry” under Section 3 of the Pakistan Commissions of Inquiry Act 2017 (PCIA).
The MQM-P leader called on the premier to take “serious notice in exercise [of] your constitutional powers” for providing justice to the Gul Plaza victims.
The commission would aim to “inquire comprehensively into the said incident and to fix the [responsibility] and to bring to justice […] all those Sindh Govt. officials and other culprits, private persons, etc, who have been found to be involved in the happening and the subsequent deaths and loss of valuable lives of hundreds of victims, injured etc, either directly or indirectly in any manner, specially due to criminal professional negligence of Sindh Govt. officials”, the letter added.
It further urged the premier to make the inquiry commission’s report public under Section 15 of the PCIA to “ensure transparency and accountability, such that no said tragic, traumatic and inhuman incident” will take place in the future.
He suggested that the commission include the director generals (DGs) of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Intelligence Bureau (IB), National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) and Sindh National Accountability Bureau (NAB); the directors of Military Intelligence (MI) and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI); the State Bank of Pakistan joint director; as well as members from Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC), Pakistan Council of Architects and Town Planners, and National Engineering Services Pakistan (Nespak).
Farooq Dattar contended that Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah was “misleading the people” and diverting attention away from the Gul Plaza incident, mentioning his remarks on the floor of the Sindh Assembly.
Sattar argued that regularisations were also done by his successor, Naimatullah Khan and that the PPP had been in power in Sindh since 2008.
Sattar also lashed out at the chief minister for reaching the site “22 hours” after the incident occurred, adding that Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab visited “after 23 hours”.
He criticised the Sindh government for terming the questions raised by them as “politicising” the matter. “Should someone not ask where the mayor was, when he did not arrive until 23 hours later? Should someone not ask why the deputy mayor did not come at all?” Staff Report
