KARACHI: Abdul Rahman, the man behind the Baldia factory fire confessed to the arson on Wednesday, adding that Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s (MQM) Hammad and Rauf Siddiqui took five crores from the factory’s owners.
The suspect, who also goes by the moniker Bhola, was brought in front of the Anti Terrorism Court’s (ATC) magistrate where he made the confession, with a challan including his confession submitted to the court in which Bhola said that he had been ordered by Hammad to set fire to the factory.
Subsequently, the magistrate issued a warrant for Hammad Siddiqui’s arrest while ordering that the police also investigate Rauf Siddiqui’s involvement in the arson.
According to the details in the submitted challan, of the five initial suspects involved in setting the fire, two, including Bhola, had been arrested while three were still on the loose.
The Baldia factory fire, which occurred on 11 September, 2012, resulted in the death of at least 257 people, making it the worst such incident in the history of Pakistan. An investigation into the incident concluded that it was in arson, with the high level MQM members allegedly being behind it.
Bhola, who was considered the key suspect in the arson, was caught by police in December of last year in Bangkok by Interpol forces.
