‘Suspected gas poisoning’: Three minor siblings die in Karachi

KARACHI: Three children tragically died at their home in the Gulistan-e-Jauhar neighbourhood on Saturday, following what is believed to be a heavy spray of pesticides at their home.

The tragic incident took place at an apartment in Block-19, Gulistan-e-Jauhar within the limits of Sharae Faisal police station.

According to the neighbours, the mother of the deceased children, Naureen, wife of Imran, came out of her apartment screaming and shouting for neighbours’ help to transport her children to the hospital.

They said when they entered the house they found it to be densely filled with some gas and children lying collapsed on their beds.

The neihgbours rushed the children to a nearby private hospital in Gulshan-e-Iqbal where doctors pronounced them dead on arrival. On hearing the shocking news the mother fell unconscious. The deceased were identified as eight-year-old Zahidan, six-year-old Arshan, and three-year-old Eshal.

The police visited the scene of the incident, collected samples and inquired about the incident. Quoting the neighbours, the Police said the mother of the deceased children had sprayed pesticides at her house.

According to initial investigations, the Police believe the incident to have occurred due to excessive quantity of strong pesticides. Police have collected different samples from the victims’ home and send them to a laboratory for analysis.

The children’s father lives in Lahore, while the mother in Karachi following their separation. The relatives of the father complained to the police that the woman did not allow the father to meet his children or even communicate through video chat.

While expressing their doubts, they asked the police to investigate the case from different angles.

Meanwhile, on the other hand, the relatives of the woman, according to the police, insisted on not conducting the postmortem of the children. Further investigation was underway.