Karachi Gul Plaza fire: 11-year-old to face trial over blaze that killed 72

Karachi,UPDATED: Jul 5, 2026 17:36 IST

An 11-year-old boy will stand trial in Pakistan after police named him as an accused in the chargesheet linked to the January fire at Karachi's Gul Plaza shopping complex that killed 72 people. The chargesheet also names the boy's father and four others, all of whom have been absconding since the blaze.

The fire broke out at the shopping plaza on M A Jinnah Road in Karachi's commercial Saddar area on January 17. It gutted the building, and firefighters and rescue teams took a week to bring it under control.

According to prosecution witnesses, the minor was looking after an artificial flower shop in his father's absence and allegedly started the fire while playing with matchsticks. District Prosecutor Abdul Razzaq Gujjar said the boy would be tried in court along with the other accused named in the chargesheet.

The other accused are Gul Plaza Management Committee members Tanveer Pasta, Amar Ismail, Muhammad Ramazan and Muhammad Ameen. The investigating officer has listed 42 prosecution witnesses in the chargesheet, which says 72 people were killed, eight were injured, and 1,153 shops were gutted in the blaze.

Gujjar said the report of the judicial commission, which also investigated the incident, would be filed in court later. According to the chargesheet, several prosecution witnesses have recorded their statements, including a 13-year-old boy who said he was present at his friend's shop in Gul Plaza and that the fire suddenly broke out there while matchsticks were being played with. The case now moves ahead with the trial of the boy and the other accused over one of Karachi's deadliest shopping complex fires.

With PTI Inputs

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