Police in Karachi have submitted a detailed charge sheet in the Gul Plaza fire case, placing primary responsibility on the shopping mall’s association. The massive blaze that tore through the three-storey market on 17 January left more than 70 people dead and destroyed nearly 1,200 shops selling wedding wear, toys, household goods and baby clothes.
According to the challan filed in court on Saturday, investigators found no negligence on the part of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation, the fire brigade or civil defence. Instead, the document raises serious questions about the fire safety arrangements inside Gul Plaza and the alleged carelessness of its management. Police have listed 87 witnesses and included CCTV footage along with other evidence collected during the probe.
A forensic examination of recovered items detected neither explosive material nor any traces of flammable liquid. Only particles left behind after burning were identified in some samples.
Earlier findings by a judicial commission support the police conclusions. The commission noted that the de facto management of Gul Plaza was fully aware of critical safety gaps yet failed to fix them. Civil Defence inspection reports for both 2024 and 2025 repeatedly flagged the complete absence of hydrants, hose reels, fire pumps and a working alarm system. Trained staff, regular fire drills and basic rescue equipment were also missing.
The commission stressed that the tragedy was not an unforeseeable accident but a predictable outcome of running a large commercial building without even the minimum fire safety capacity. Prevention, detection and firefighting systems were all non-existent, leaving shopkeepers and customers completely exposed.
The charge sheet therefore focuses on the Gul Plaza administration’s failure to maintain safe conditions despite repeated official warnings. Families of the victims continue to demand full accountability as the case moves forward in the courts.
