Gul Plaza fire: Families of victims protest as search for missing hits day 12

KARACHI: Families of those missing in the Gul Plaza inferno staged a protest on Wednesday, decrying the lack of information regarding their loved ones 12 days after the tragedy, ARY News reported.

Protesting outside Gul Plaza, the families expressed frustration that nearly two weeks have passed without any official word on the disappeared. They also demanded that the authorities hand over the remains of their family members for burial.

Deputy Commissioner (DC) South and the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) arrived at the protest site to negotiate with the heirs. “Give us a day or two, and we will be able to provide information in this regard,” the officials requested.

Political Backlash Meanwhile, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Karachi and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) have rejected the inquiry report submitted by Karachi Commissioner Hassan Naqvi.

JI Karachi Chief Munam Zafar Khan dismissed the report, arguing that it was prepared by the very officer responsible for oversight during the incident. “The commissioner is answerable to many questions,” Khan stated.

“Where was Rescue 1122? Where was the NDMA? It was the commissioner’s responsibility to coordinate these institutions.”

Khan added that the commissioner cannot be cleared simply by issuing a report that establishes a cause of fire, demanding instead that a judicial commission probe the inferno.

Opposition Criticism Echoing these sentiments, MQM-P also rejected the report and called for a judicial inquiry.

Ali Khurshidi, the MQM-P Opposition Leader in the Sindh Assembly, raised serious questions regarding the government’s rescue efforts.

He criticized the administration for failing to extinguish the fire for two days, noting that not a single shop in the affected area could be saved.