KARACHI: A 12-year-old boy fell eight storeys to his death in an elevator shaft in the Saddar area on Saturday, police said.

The incident sparked protest from the family and residents of the building who alleged that it was the second such incident as in the previous one, two people were left seriously injured due to the malfunctioning of the lift. The police said that the victim, Zain Gul, walked in when the elevator doors opened and fell to his death as there was no lift in place.

“He was the only son of his parents,” said Inspector Orangzeb Khattak, SHO Preedy police station. “There are four lifts in the building which has 12 residential floors. However, only one is in order as the other three are not in use for past many months due to some faults. The building management and office bearers of residents’ union have been called in to the police station to [ascertain the] facts.”

He said the father of the deceased boy was a fruit dealer in the nearby Empress Market and the family originally hailed from Quetta.

“The police will proceed as per law if the family or any other resident files a complaint of negligence against the union or the building management,” said the Preedy SHO. “The residents of the building initially protested against the management, which is tasked with the building maintenance and blocked the main road along Empress Market, which caused severe traffic jam. However, they dispersed peacefully after police intervention.”

Published in Dawn, December 25th, 2016