Information Commission orders disclosure after party alleges cover-up in deadly blaze investigation
Fire at the Gul Plaza. PHOTO: XINHUA
The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) on Tuesday criticised the Sindh government over what it termed as deliberate concealment of the Gul Plaza fire inquiry report, following an interim order by the Sindh Information Commission.
In a statement, the party’s spokesperson welcomed the commission’s ruling, calling it a victory for the people of Sindh and a setback for what he described as a “corrupt feudal system” and bureaucratic collusion within provincial departments.
The spokesperson said the interim order, issued on a complaint filed by Advocate Muhammad Tariq Mansoor, had raised serious questions about the provincial government’s role in withholding the judicial commission’s findings into the deadly blaze.
According to the statement, the Justice Agha Faisal-led one-member judicial commission had submitted a comprehensive inquiry report – comprising four additional volumes – to the law secretary on April 7, 2026, in the presence of media and the public.
However, when a request was filed under the Right to Information (RTI) law on April 28 seeking access to the report, the law secretary’s office allegedly refused to receive the application, prompting criticism from the information commission.
The MQM-P spokesperson termed the move a violation of Article 19-A of the Constitution, which guarantees citizens’ right to access information, adding that the commission had also expressed displeasure over the matter.
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He further claimed that the absence of the report had already affected legal proceedings, noting that a police charge sheet in a related case registered at Nabi Bakhsh police station was returned by a judicial magistrate due to the investigating officer’s failure to provide the inquiry findings.
“This reflects the extent to which the provincial government is shielding those responsible and obstructing justice,” the spokesperson alleged.
The statement also criticised the law department for shifting responsibility to the home department, calling it an attempt to deflect accountability.
The Sindh Information Commission has since directed the home secretary to present the complete Gul Plaza Judicial Commission report, along with a separate inquiry report by the Karachi commissioner dated January 20, 2026, at the next hearing scheduled for July 8.
The MQM-P vowed to pursue the matter across all available forums, including the courts and accountability institutions, until those responsible are held accountable and justice is delivered to the victims’ families.
