RECORDER REPORT

KARACHI: A mysterious fire that erupted in property room of the City Court’s Complex on late Tuesday night was extinguished after hours-long rescue efforts by fire brigade department officials on Wednesday morning.

The police said that blaze had first erupted around 3 AM then rapidly spread outwards, however the fire officials who reached at the site after an emergency call, were unable to contain the flames for hours.

Sources said that various files containing case records were burnt. They feared the destruction of case records will directly benefit high-profile suspects. The cause of the blaze is said to be a short circuit till filing of this report.

Sindh Home Minister Suhail Anwer Siyal has taken notice of the incident and directed the Inspector General of Police Sindh to hold an independent inquiry into the matter. He directed to unearth facts about the fire incident through effective and result-oriented investigation.

It took four and a half hours to douse the flames. Five fire fighters participated in the rescue work after police and Rangers cordoned the area off. Traffic on roads leading to the court was also blocked.

Police said multiple explosions were heard in the court’s evidence room, which usually houses items including explosives recovered from arrested suspects, as the fire spread outwards, prompting a call to the bomb disposal squad. Proceedings of the cases in the court remained suspended.

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Sindh AD Khawaja told media that there was no officer inside the building when the fire broke out. Khawaja said the cause of fire and consequent damage would be ascertained once the flames have been doused completely and the affected area cooled down.

Police said that the City Court police station and the evidence room does not have closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed.

However, CCTV cameras inside the court were being checked to see if any footage may help the police to ascertain the fact. Fear had spread throughout the area when residents were woken up by intermittent blasts during the night.