The Gul Plaza tragedy exposed who is who and what is what. Petty politics during the Gul Plaza tragedy is an undemocratic exercise. Igniting ethnic feelings in the aftermath of the Gul Plaza fire, culminating in death and debris, and directing guns against the entire system instead of calling for a proper investigation and fixing responsibility, is nothing but an attempt to leave the issue in limbo and subsequently sow the seeds of political polarisation in the province.
Banners, accompanied by wall chalking, demanded that Karachi be placed under federal administrative oversight. It is no secret who is advancing politics of hate and division. But the public has not forgotten the faces and fingers that hijacked the city of lights at gunpoint for decades.
The Baldia Factory fire and the subsequent loss of lives, and the 12 May tragedy of 2007, are just the tip of the iceberg in terms of piercing barbaric teeth into the body of the beautiful city called Karachi. People still remember how the executioners became mourners, wailing over the victims’ dead bodies, and how alleged extortionism was institutionalised as a tool to target those defying urban dacoits. People still remember how the killing spree continued and how a bright day was turned into darkness.
Political commentators and writers like Masood Lahore were vocal against this contemptuous context and reminded MQM leaders, like Mustafa Kamal, of their old habits and the methods applied by the party to intimidate innocent citizens. A tainted past will continue to haunt and follow them till posterity.
The blame game raised its ugly head: Mustafa Kamal accused the Sindh Government of withdrawing security as a measure to intimidate him. However, Sharjeel Inam Memon dismissed the claim as misleading and politically motivated. Poisoning the provincial social landscape in tragic times is a political crime and must be discarded as soon as possible in the larger interest of the people and democracy.
Those who migrated to India during the Partition have not only socially assimilated into the societal fabric but have also nurtured patriotism for the country they now live in. Conversely, the lot that came here, especially political representatives, continue to spill venom against the people who offered them land. Those living in India do harbour love for their ancestral land, but cannot imagine inciting a racial divide in India during times of tragedy.
Despite this, the Muslim community continues to face high-handed treatment at the hands of successive governments in India. Remember the Gujarat riots and the divisive policies pursued by the Narendra Modi-led regimes.
The Gul Plaza inferno actually exposed those already exposed. Their fictional narrative, built around the inferno, failed to achieve the ulterior motives hidden behind hypocritical sympathy for the victims consumed by raging flames. Redundancy may have rendered results in the 1990s, but those days are gone; now, such narratives are being challenged and exposed with contrasting reminders of the arson and violence that reigned supreme in the city of lights.
Pulling the wool over Karachiites’ eyes is now very difficult, as independent media channels and social media continue to shine light on the murky methods applied by racially prejudiced politicians. Igniting racial prejudices while people were waiting to receive the remains of their loved ones, whose bones were reduced to ashes, is an inhuman act.
It is said that "old habits die hard." Intoxicated with old habits, certain unscrupulous characters leave no stone unturned to poison the ears of ordinary Urdu-speaking individuals.
An important question arises: why do they not own the language and literature of the land they have been living in? Their silence on the issue of the anti-canal movement is a stark reminder of their indifference to the needs of the province. Why do they adopt elaborate distractions on important issues, ranging from the Gul Plaza inferno to the Baldia Factory fire, instead of asking for proper investigation and punishment of those responsible for unleashing such tragic scenes and the subsequent loss of lives and property?
Reportedly, Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) leader Farooq Sattar urged PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari to seek the resignations of the Sindh Chief Minister and the Karachi Mayor. A war of words has been ongoing between MQM-P and PPP leaders in the wake of the Gul Plaza inferno, with lawmakers associated with the former party demanding that Karachi be handed over to the Centre.
Addressing a press conference in Karachi, Sattar termed Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, Senior Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon, and Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab, whom he said were close to Bilawal, as his "three naive friends."
"What if a drop scene happens? They are making you sink in a swamp. So we, Karachi's people, those living in Sindh's cities, are demanding from you that all three resign," Sattar said, referring to CM Murad, Memon, and Wahab.
Asking for resignations rather than ensuring an independent inquiry into the incident speaks volumes about political hypocrisy. Time and again, the MQM leadership questions the credibility of the political mandate given to the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). Questioning the mandate given to the PPP on age-old arguments that its political and parliamentary crop are feudal lords is quite incomprehensible.
Is the whole edifice of voters and those voted to power in other federating units not based on the same foundation? Are the elected representatives across other provinces not the same feudal lords, capitalists, and retired bureaucrats?
Critiquing policies pursued by the provincial government is fundamentally different from directing the gun against the PPP on the back of tragedies like the Gul Plaza fire. This situation demands political unity and administrative professionalism to ensure safety measures across such plazas in the province.
Issues of governance should be highlighted in a professional manner rather than for political point-scoring. Silencing the real issues faced by the population and opening them up for sensationalism in tragic times that demand national unity is nothing but unscrupulousness.
Given the magnitude of the Gul Plaza inferno, people commonly believe that the plaza was set ablaze deliberately. Many conspiracy theories have emerged following the fire, from real estate corporate greed to historical extortion mafia modus operandi. This demands a watertight inquiry.
As per media and preliminary reports, "A fire that killed at least 79 people at Karachi's Gul Plaza shopping complex was reportedly triggered in a ground-floor flower shop by children playing with a matchstick, an initial probe report revealed. The blaze rapidly engulfed the multi-story building, highlighting serious gaps in fire safety compliance in Pakistan's largest city."
Apart from the loss of lives, imagine the damage bill for the destroyed infrastructure and the subsequent rehabilitation costs to be borne by the cash-starved provincial economy. Also, consider the loss of livelihoods and the economic pain emanating from the disaster.
Reportedly, the Sindh Cabinet, while approving compensation, sanctioned Rs10 million for the families of the deceased, along with Rs10 million in "interest-free loans" for shopkeepers affected by the blaze.
“In addition, Rs500,000 per shopkeeper will be provided as immediate subsistence support to cover household and utility expenses,” it was stated.
The Chief Minister emphasised that “there can be no compromise on human life. Relief, justice, and prevention must go hand in hand.”
While the PPP-led provincial government has announced monetary compensation for the victims of the Gul Plaza tragedy, those losing their limbs and lives, which is praiseworthy, doing justice demands an independent inquiry into the incident and subsequently placing the facts and figures in every context before the public.
Besides, the Gul Plaza inferno should be used as an opportunity to inspect all shopping malls and commercial centres across the country, especially Karachi, to avoid such tragedies in the future. Instead of calling for accountability in terms of fixing responsibility and ensuring fire safety compliance, stoking ethnic fire is nothing but moral and political depravity.
This historical hypocrisy is rooted in racism. Racism is a colonial way of thinking. Igniting racial rage in tragic times is undoubtedly callousness. Those biting the hands that waved welcome and offered their land to the migrating population are destined to doom and gloom. Neither history will forgive them, nor will the people forget them.