12 witnesses record statements in Baldia factory fire case

KARACHI: As many as 12 witnesses recorded their statements on Saturday before an anti-terrorism court (ATC) conducting trial of suspects allegedly involved in the Baldia factory fire.

In their statements, the witnesses said they reached Ali Enterprises in Baldia Town when they heard the news on media that the factory was on fire and people were trapped inside.

The witnesses testified that when they reached the site, police mobiles and fire tenders were present around the factory and burnt bodies were being taken out. It was impossible to identify the bodies, they said.

The witnesses informed the court that the bodies were handed over to the heirs a few days after the incident and not on the day when the inferno took place.

The ATC summoned another group of more than 12 witnesses to record their statements on the next hearing on October 27.

It may be mentioned here that more than 300 witnesses have already recorded their statements in the case and most of them have confirmed that the bodies of the deceased workers could not be identified. However in a few cases, the bodies were identified with the help of mobile phone SIM. The witnesses also testified that the bodies were taken under the police custody to hospitals for post-mortem.

Around 260 workers were burnt to death in the blaze incident at Ali Enterprises in 2010. There are allegations that the fire was not an accident and it was intentionally caused. Workers of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Abdul Rehman alias Bhola, Zubair alias Charia and others, are being tried in the case.