An investigating officer has filed the charge sheet in the Gul Plaza Shopping Centre fire case, saying that an 11-year-old boy will be tried in juvenile court for allegedly causing the Jan. 17 blaze that claimed 72 lives.
Submitted through District Prosecutor Abdul Razzaq Gujjar, the charge sheet was accepted despite the absence of the judicial commission’s report, which prosecutors said could be submitted later.
The report names six accused: the minor, Huzaifa; his father, Naimatullah; and four members of the Gul Plaza Management Committee, Tanveer Pasta, Amar Ismail, Muhammad Ramazan, and Muhammad Ameen. All have been declared absconders. Investigators listed 42 prosecution witnesses.
According to witness statements recorded before a magistrate, Huzaifa was playing with matchsticks in his father’s shop when the fire erupted.
Two eyewitnesses claimed Naimatullah routinely left the shop in his underage son’s care, while call records indicated he was absent during the incident.
The investigation also alleges serious negligence by the management committee, citing blocked exits, inadequate firefighting equipment, the absence of a hydrant system, and failure to contact emergency services.
The charge sheet says these lapses contributed significantly to the scale of the tragedy and the destruction of 1,153 shops.
