Kamran Khamiso Khowaja
After 8 years an anti-terrorism court of Karachi spelled out the verdict in the Baldia factory carnage case, sentencing, two MQM workers Zubair aka Chariya and Abdul Rahman Aka Bhola to death, while the rest of the convicts who facilitated the blazing of the factory in Baldia area of district west were sentenced to rigorous life imprisonments accompanied with fine. Leaders of MQM Including Rauf Siddiqi former minister for commerce who were accused of hatching the conspiracy of this deadly massacre were acquitted on need of evidence. Why only those who commit crimes are punished? and why not those who conspire? Other than sentencing convicts the court also agreed that the baldia factory carnage was not an accident but an act of deliberation. Initially owners of the factory accused watchmen of negligence and filed a case against them but the JIT report presented by rangers in the court after three years of the incident disclosed that the factory was advertently blazed for non-payment of extortion money by the Factory owners, apart from it high profile politicians were involved in the whole episode. The JIT also highlighted the non-professional and lethargic approach of police towards the investigation of this planned terror pursuit that turned 260 innocent laborers into ash. The initial investigation report of police said that the eruption occurred due to a short circuit but the JIT report proved that the initial police report was “Cooked with hands”.In the course of case proceedings, the prosecutor complained of the constant intervention of MQM in the case which was probably delaying justice. He said that the first investigation officer was withdrawn from the case by the police high-ups following constant Political pressure. Several eye-witnesses evaded recording their statement for the sake of their lives. When it comes to timely justice coupled with fairness the name of our country is not written in good books. Despite all the facts and figures presented by JIT MQM-P is claiming that their party had no relatedness with this case. It is rightly said that justice is blind because it is done in the light of given evidence but we as a society must not close our eyes. Renowned Jurists, political analysts, and members of civil society have termed it an incomplete justice because once again only those were punished who were used to commit the crime, while those who were the main delinquents and planned the strategy of the whole carnage were acquitted for want of evidence. There is a famous quote that,” Justice must not be done but also seen to be done” and here justice was done but nobody saw it being done.
