Pakistani court sentences two to death for 2012 factory fire

The court ruled that the blaze, which killed more than 260 garment workers, was arson

Pakistani security officials stand guard outside the Supreme Court in 2019. EPA

Two men were sentenced to death on Tuesday for Pakistan’s deadliest industrial fire.

The court ruled that the blaze, which killed more than 260 factory workers in 2012, was a case of arson and not an accident.

It sent shockwaves through the country as survivors shared accounts of people trapped in the factory because doors were locked.

The convicted men were previously affiliated with a political party that is part of the ruling government coalition.

Pakistan’s Anti-Terrorism Court found that the men set the building ablaze because of a non-payment of extortion money by the factory’s owner.

Ali Enterprise, a garments manufacturer, operated from a multistorey building in the southern city of Karachi.