Mystery of ‘gas leak’

It appears to be a typical case of buck-passing. Since February last year, multiple deaths have occurred in the Keamari neighbourhood of Karachi, yet even now the cause of these deaths remains a mystery. Recently, the Sindh High Court expressed annoyance over the failure of both the federal and provincial governments to properly investigate the matter. In his deposition, the investigation officer of the case failed to confirm whether it was toxic fumes that led to the deaths or something else.

It has been reported in the media that it was poisonous fumes emanating from soyabean brought from abroad that killed 20 people after they inhaled the toxic gas. The gas reportedly leaked from ships, containing soyabean, docked at the Karachi Port. The port is located in Keamari. The court asked the IO several questions, but it found none of his replies satisfactory.

A division bench of the SHC — comprising Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, who headed the bench, and Justice Amjad Ali Sahito — had summoned the IO and officials of the Karachi Port Trust (KPT) and asked for a report on the progress made in the case. The court also sought a report from the Sindh Environmental Protection Agency on the cause (s) of the tragedy. When the IO said he did not know what caused the deaths, Justice Sahito observed that so many people lost their lives but no one had been held accountable. He also hinted at attempts being made to hush up things. The court was further baffled at the replies of the deputy advocate general. He told the court that post-mortem had been performed on only one of the bodies, and in the autopsy report the cause of death had been described as ‘unnatural’.

The counsel for the port trust told the court that since none of the deaths occurred within his client’s jurisdictions, it could not be held accountable for them. He maintained that it was the Sindh government’s responsibility rather than his client’s to ascertain the cause of the deaths. Obviously, the executive is indulging in its old habit of blame game. Where will the buck stop?

Published in The Express Tribune, January 22^nd, 2021.

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