Accountability: Baldia fire commission report sought

Sindh High Court directs provincial law officer to submit report of judicial commission on the fire by January 24.

KARACHI:

The Sindh High Court (SHC) directed the provincial law officer on Tuesday to submit the report of the judicial commission on the Baldia factory fire by January 24.

Justice Maqbool Baqir, who headed the bench, noted that the report had not been submitted by the provincial law officer despite court orders.

He adjourned the case till January 24 and directed the advocate general to submit the report in court.

Meanwhile, the terms of reference to form a commission to disburse the $1 million compensation pledged by a German firm were also submitted.

The German firm is one of the importers of the products of the Ali Enterprises garment factory, where the fire broke out. According to official statistics, nearly 259 workers were burnt alive when the factory caught fire on September 11, 2012. Several human rights organisations took the factory owners to court.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 16^th, 2013.