Court admits plea holding Baldia factory owners liable

Petitioner contends lack of safety measures, absence of emergency exit led to workers' deaths

A local court issued notices on Monday over a plea claiming a penalty of Rs14.6 million from the owners of the Ali Enterprises factory in Baldia Town.

The owners are accused of not taking safety and security measures, including the installation of an emergency exit, during the factory fire in which over 259 labourers perished.

Arguing the claim before the West sessions and district court at the City Court, the petitioner's counsel maintained that a machine operator, Nasreen Naz, died in the fire, leaving behind two children.

The counsel contended that the factory owners and relevant departments are responsible for the incident as there were no security arrangements nor an emergency exit at the factory. The petitioner prayed the court to direct the owners to pay compensation to support Naz's children.

The local court admitted the plea for hearing and issued notices to the parties for December 14.

Declared fugitive

A local court declared Adil Zaman, who is accused in the murder case of anchorperson Mureed Abbas and his friend, as a fugitive from the law and directed the relevant authorities to seize Zaman’s moveable and immovable properties.

Arguments to declare Zaman a fugitive were presented before the South additional district and sessions judge.

The IO suspects he has gone into hiding in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and is evading arrest. The IO further said that no one was willing to receive the notice on behalf of the accused either.

The court declared Zaman a fugitive and issued directives to confiscate his properties. He has been on the run since the Supreme Court, hearing the case at the Karachi registry, cancelled his bail.

Three convicted for murder

Meanwhile, a model court convicted a man and his sisters for his wife’s murder.

The East model criminal court was hearing the case. According to the police, accused Ansar Khan strangled his wife, Afshan, to death and hung her body from the ceiling fan to cover up the murder and disguise it as a suicide. They had been married for six months and she was two months pregnant.

Khan’s sisters, Begum and Maira, were also accused of witnessing the murder and attempting to conceal the crime. The case against the accused was lodged at Zaman Town Police Station.

The court sentenced Khan to life imprisonment and directed him to pay Rs1.5 million in blood money to the family of his deceased wife.

Besides, the court sentenced the convicted sisters to six years imprisonment each for concealing the crime.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 8^th, 2020.