Karachi, Feb. 23, 2026 — SSP Traffic Ejaz Sheikh appeared before the inquiry commission investigating the Gul Plaza fire and said the blaze started when children were playing with matches.
Sheikh stated that when he arrived at the scene, the fire was intense on the main road side, while the DC office side had relatively smaller flames. People were seen removing goods to save them. Police personnel were deployed on three sides to control the crowd, but the fire quickly spread to all sides.
According to the SSP, two children admitted to playing with matches, which, combined with flammable items like blankets, clothes, flowers, tissue paper, and sprays, caused the fire. He said their statements were collected as part of the inquiry.
The commission asked for basement CCTV footage. Sheikh explained that Gul Plaza had 17 doors, four of which were open at the time; opening doors was the responsibility of the plaza association, which collected fees from shopkeepers and managed security. He added that his role was only to keep people away from rescue routes and that the association should have handled the doors, especially since timings were extended for Ramadan and Eid.
Sheikh confirmed that rescue operations were carried out without obstruction and that no issues occurred due to the crowd. He noted that with the ongoing Green Line project, roads around the plaza were 12 feet on one side and 15 feet on the other, and that the city had 5,200 police personnel deployed across various areas.
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