Gul Plaza case: IO fails to submit challan, hearing adjourned to Sept 5

KARACHI: The Investigation Officer (IO) in the Gul Plaza fire tragedy case failed to submit a challan in the City Court on Saturday, ARY News reported.

During the hearing, all the accused, including Tanveer Pasta, President of the Gul Plaza Association, were presented before the court.

During the hearing, the IO failed to submit the case challan.

On the other hand, the court extended the interim bail of all the accused, including Tanveer Pasta.

Consequently, the court adjourned the hearing of the case till September 5.

Earlier, on the last hearing on August 4, the investigation into the Gul Plaza fire case could not be completed due to a lack of cooperation from the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) and the Water Corporation, with the investigating officer seeking additional time from the court.

The devastating fire that broke out and engulfed Gul Plaza on the night of January 17, claimed dozens of lives, and continued for more than 32 hours before it was brought under control.

The Karachi court has granted Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Amir Warak an extension until August 9 to complete the investigation.

DSP Amir Warak told the court that statements from officials of two departments had not yet been recorded and requested more time. Sources said officials of both departments are expected to record their statements after Chehlum.

According to sources, the investigating officer has recorded statements from officials of six government departments, including Traffic Police, Fire Brigade, Civil Defence, Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC), Deputy Commissioner South’s office, and Rescue 1122.

Sources said the investigation has placed greater responsibility on Tanveer Pasta, with investigators alleging that he failed to fulfill his responsibilities after the fire broke out.

Read More: Gul Plaza fire: Police declare Tanveer Pasta, accomplices responsible for deadly tragedy

Investigators claimed that Tanveer Pasta did not inform the Fire Brigade and instead contacted K-Electric after the incident.

The investigating officer has already recorded statements from Tanveer Pasta, Ammar Ismail, Amin, Ramzan, Nematullah, and Hudaifa.

The previous investigating officer had nominated six people, including Gul Plaza Union President Tanveer Pasta, as accused in the case. Tanveer Pasta and other suspects are currently on interim bail.