As the mystery surrounding the New Karachi Industrial Area ice factory explosion, which has killed 10 people and injured 25 others, is yet to be solved, the factory’s owner has written to Pakistan’s prime minister among other authorities seeking an inquiry into the blast.
Rejecting the police claims, the factory owner claimed that the incident was an act of terrorism, and that what had happened at his factory was similar to what had happened in the Baldia Town garment factory fire.
The factory owner, namely Moin Qadri, has written to PM Imran Khan, Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, Minister of State and Special Assistant for Overseas Pakistanis & Human Resource Development Sayed Zulfiqar Abbas Bukhari and Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah among others.
He informed the higher authorities through his letter about the threats he had been receiving. He also appealed to them to include the neighbouring factory in the investigation. “There has been no negligence on the part of my company’s technical team,” he said.
“The news that has been spreading following the incident claims it was a boiler explosion, despite the fact that there is no boiler installed at the factory.”
Currently residing in the UK, the factory owner explained that he would not be able to return to Pakistan to assist in the investigation because of the suspension of international flights due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
He also explained that he had been receiving threats for the past six years over signing an agreement with a juice factory, but he had not filed a complaint considering them to be “minor threats”.
He appealed that the case should be investigated from all the different angles, and that the investigators should include the neighbouring factory in their investigation.
He accused the police of trying to pressurise the management of his company by keeping his factory’s manager, namely Asghar, in their custody. He also accused the police of harassing his factory’s employees in the name of investigation, lamenting that the investigators are trying to blame everything on only the factory’s management.
On the other hand, the investigating officer of the case, namely Ali Haider, admitted that the police have been facing difficulties in their investigation. He also admitted that the police have taken the factory manager into custody for interrogation.