Disturbing CCTV footage has surfaced in Karachi, showing three-year-old Ibrahim tragically falling into an open manhole near NIPA Chowrangi on Sunday. The child’s body was retrieved the following day.
The video, obtained from a nearby departmental store, captures the moment Ibrahim, walking just five steps from the store’s exit, plunges straight into the uncovered manhole in the parking area.
The footage confirms the drain was completely exposed without any protective cover or barrier. Moments later, the boy’s mother is seen rushing out, screaming for help as onlookers gather.
The body was recovered by a man identified as Tanveer, who bravely entered the strong-flowing drainage channel. He located the child’s foot and, with immense difficulty, managed to pull the boy out before handing him over to his distraught parents.
23 dead in 11 months: Karachi’s open manholes become death traps for children
The tragedy immediately sparked a political blame game. In the Sindh Assembly, opposition MPAs from Jamaat-e-Islami and MQM-P lambasted Mayor Murtaza Wahab and the PPP-led provincial government, demanding resignations and accountability for the “collapse of civic services” and “criminal negligence.”
Mayor Wahab announced a full inquiry, conceding the severity of the incident and ordering citywide manhole inspections by the Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation (KWSC).
It was revealed that the specific open manhole had been officially flagged as hazardous in October, weeks before the fatal fall, intensifying calls for immediate action against those responsible.
