KARACHI: After nearly six months, police have still failed to submit the final charge sheet in the case of Gul Plaza inferno that claimed the lives of 72 individuals on the night of January 17, 2026.
A source familiar with the matter, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Dawn that the police would fix the responsibility on four union officials — Tanveer Pasta, Amar Ismail, Muhammad Ramazan and Muhammad Ameen — as well as the owner of an artificial flower shop and his teenage son, who were still at large.
A month ago, the investigating officer of the case had attempted to submit the charge sheet but it was returned back to him as the prosecution had highlighted defects in the report.
However, the investigating officer has still failed to submit the charge sheet before the court and has not been able to rectify the defects identified earlier.
Prosecution has asked IO to include site inspection reports, details of former union officials before filing final report in court
The source claimed that, during the investigation it was revealed that no union official had contacted the emergency services at the time of the incident, nor had they prevented the teenage boy from running the shop in the absence of his father, which allegedly led to the fire that reduced the ground-plus-three-storey building to ruins, with parts of it collapsing.
The source further said that the investigation found the exit gates were closed and that fire safety equipment was absent from the plaza. It was also revealed in the alleged forensic report that no explosive or ignitable substances were found.
Earlier, a month ago, the prosecution had returned the charge sheet because it did not include inspection reports from the relevant authorities, documents related to the plaza, or details of former union officials.
The prosecution also advised the investigating officer to fix liabilities and obtain records of a case lodged by the anti-corruption authorities over the alleged unauthorised construction on the plot.
For context, in 2008, former officials of the Karachi Building Control Authority (KBCA) including its former chief were charged for allegedly colluding with the owner of plot No. PR-I/32 — on which Gul Plaza was built — by allowing him to convert an area reserved for car parking into shops.
However, the state later withdrew the case after the competent authority, then chief minister Qaim Ali Shah, approved its withdrawal under Section 494 (effect of withdrawal from prosecution) of the Criminal Procedure Code.
The government subsequently at that time issued a notification and requested the court to permit the withdrawal of the case and acquit the accused persons.
After the state’s request, the court exonerated the former KBCA chief and 11 others in the case.
In February, four prosecution witnesses recorded their statements before the judicial magistrate, in which one of the witnesses, 13-year-old Aryan, son of one of the shopkeepers in the plaza, deposed that he saw 11-year-old Huzaifa, son of the flower shop owner, playing with matchsticks when the fire suddenly broke out that day.
While, other shopkeepers and salesmen corroborated his statement, claiming that the fire had first erupted in the artificial flower shop.
A manslaughter case was registered on the complaint of the SHO of the Nabi Bux police station against unknown persons.
Published in Dawn, June 26 , 2026