The order read that there were serious allegations against the people relieved of the charges by the police.
PHOTO: AFP
Ten affectees who lost their children in the fire moved an application in the ATC-II stating that they engaged Muneer A Malik, Adnan I Chaudhry, Salahuddin Ahmed, Faisal Siddiqi, Haider Waheed, Mohamed Vawda, Salahuddin Panhwer, Nadeem Ahmed and Amna Usman as their attorneys to plead the case on their behalf.
The applicants, Muhammad Arman, Muhammad Ikram, Syed Murtaza Hussain, Ahmed Ali, Muhammad Ishaque, Saeeda Khatoon, Muhammad Moosa, Naushad Ali and Abdul Aziz Khan, include senior leadership and members of Ali Enterprises Fire Affectees Association - a body formed by the victims to campaign for justice.
More than 250 people were killed and dozens injured in the fire at Ali Enterprises garments factory in Baldia Town on September 11, 2012. During the past four years, the case has seen a fair share of delays, due to political interventions.
At the outset of the hearing, the ATC-II judge asked the investigating officer (IO) of the case about the compliance of the non-bailable warrants issued at the previous hearing for the absconding suspects. The IO replied that most of them could not be found at their mentioned addresses.
Only three of the nominated suspects, Hyderabad-based businessmen brothers Umar Hassan Kadri and Ali Hassan Kadri and another suspect, Zubair alias Charya, could make it to the court while the remaining 12, including the factory owners, did not appear nor did they inform the court about the reason for their absence.
Meanwhile, the victims' counsel, Panhwer, pleaded to the judge to summon the SSP Sajid Sudozai who was the head of investigation and part of the Joint Investigation Team which re-probed the case.
The judge remarked that if Sudozai supervised the investigations he should appear and assist the court. The officer is currently posted as SSP Kamber-Shahdadkot.
Over the nomination of the nine-lawyer panel, the court issued notices to the prosecution and defence to submit their comments at the next hearing on October 8. The case is being pleaded by the state primarily against factory owner Abdul Aziz Bhaila, his sons Arshad and Shahid, among others. The ATC-II was tasked with the case recently and in its initial order rejected the police report giving a clean chit to 13 of the nominated suspects and only referred two suspects for trial. The order read that there were serious allegations against the people relieved of the charges by the police, therefore the move was overturned.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 4th, 2016.
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