Pak probe report says Baldia factory fire was act of sabotage

The Joint Investigation Team (JIT) has come to conclusion that the fire at a factory in Baldia Town was an act of sabotage.

Muttahida Qaumi Movement's (MQM) former Karachi Tanzeemi Committee in-charge Hammad Siddiqui has been accused as the prime suspect behind the country's deadliest fire, reports Dawn.

On 11 September 2012, Ali Enterprises caught fire which claimed the lives of 259 workers and injured around 50 labourers.

The alleged terrorist act was carried out 'due to refusal to pay extortion of Rs twenty crores and partnership in factory profits by factory owners to office-bearers, namely Rehman Bhola and Hammad Siddiqi of MQM-A.

The investigation team headed by Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Sultan Khawaja and DIG Munir Shaikh has also recorded the statements of the garment factory owners the Bhaila brothers Arshad and Shahid in Dubai, who have refused to return to Pakistan.

The Bhaila brothers claimed that the fire was not accidental and an extortionist group was behind the incident.

JIT members appeared to be highly critical of the role of police investigators of the Baldia fire case.

The JIT team has submitted its final report to the Sindh Home Department and has claimed the deadly incident to be a 'planned act'.