KARACHI, Nov 24 A judicial commission formed to investigate the causes of a breach in the Tori Bund (embankment or dyke) during the recent heavy floods submitted its sealed report on Wednesday to Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah after the completion of its investigation.
The judicial commission was formed after the government was accused of causing a breach in the dyke to save the lands of some influential people.
Initially the government rejected the allegations as malicious propaganda. But under intense public pressure, it decided to constitute a judicial commission.
Retired justices Zahid Qurban Alvi and Ghulam Nabi Soomro, who comprised the commission, presented the report to the chief minister. The report is said to be based on fact-finding visits to the affected areas and testimony provided by people. It was unclear why the report was not immediately made public and was instead handed over to the government whose officials had been accused of causing the breach in Tori Bund.
The chief minister appreciated the judicial commission's efforts in compiling the report early as it has been submitted within nine weeks.
Those present on the occasion included Sindh Law Minister Ayaz Soomro, Sindh Minister for Irrigation and Power Jam Saifullah Dharejo, Sindh Chief Secretary Ghulam Ali Pasha, Secretary for Law Ghulam Nabi Shah, Home Secretary Arif Khan and Secretary for Irrigation and Power Rafik Memon.
Justice Alvi declined to divulge the conclusion the commission had drawn and said it was his understanding that the chief minister would make the findings public after going through the report and its evaluation by the quarters concerned.
The members of the judicial commission had visited Tori Bund and other embankments breached during the super floods. They were also briefed by the Guddu Barrage chief engineer.
The commission members had taken an aerial view of the site of the dykes and also heard eye-witnesses who were present at the time of the breach. For that purpose, they had given advertisements in the newspapers asking people who had any information about the breach to contact the commission.
The judicial commission members also visited Thatta and other flood-affected regions and heard eyewitnesses besides being briefed by the relevant government officials.
In earlier media reports, Guddu Chief Engineer Zafarullah Mahar was reported as having said that due to an unprecedented increase of water Tori Bund overflowed at 3pm on Aug 7. He had also said that from Aug 3 to 7 there was uninterrupted rainfall of 124 millimetres daily which weakened the embankments.