Student dies in girls hostel fire

Electric short circuit leads to fire resulting in victim’s suffocation, say police

RAWALPINDI: Anila Rasheed, a B Com student of Anmol Girls Hostel, has died due to suffocation in a fire caused by an electrical short circuit in Rawalpindi on Saturday evening, according to police reports.

The hostel re-opened after the Eid break, and Anila was the only student who returned from her native village.

She was residing on the first floor as the fire broke out on the ground floor of the private hostel.

 A Rescue-1122 official said that they received no call about the fire in the private hostel and consequently did not take any measures to put out the fire.

New Town Circle Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP)  Raja Taifoor, when contacted, confirmed that the student had died in the hostel.

Taifoor said that the hostel administration informed the police that the fire broke out due to short circuit.

The DSP further added that the medical report revealed the cause of death as suffocation. He said that the clothes of the victim were scarcely burnt, but there were no burn injuries.



In response to a question on legal action against the hostel administration, the DSP said that father of Anila had submitted a written statement with the police stating that his daughter had died in an accident, and he required no legal action.

He said that the body had been taken to Anila’s native village, Jatli in Gujar Khan.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 11^th, 2016.