Peshawar police file case against school owners, contractor after deadly roof collapse
Police in Pakistan filed a case Friday against the owners and contractor of a Peshawar school whose roof fell in, The Express Tribune and ARY News reported. The Guardian said at least 34 children and a teacher died. The police report lists 30 children and a teacher, and it alleges that bad materials were used, the Tribune said.
Police in Peshawar, Pakistan, registered a criminal case Friday against the owners, shareholders and contractor of the private school whose roofs collapsed during morning classes Thursday, The Express Tribune and ARY News reported. The case was filed at Agha Mir Jani Shah police station under Sections 322, 148 and 149 of the Pakistan Penal Code, both outlets reported. Section 322 covers qatl-bis-sabab, or death caused without direct intent, the Tribune said.
The death toll in the police report is lower than earlier counts. On Thursday, the Guardian reported that at least 34 schoolchildren and a teacher died at the al-Khair school, and the BBC put the toll at 33 students and a teacher. The first information report (FIR) lists 30 children and a female teacher killed and 52 people injured, the Tribune reported. ARY News gave the same figures.
According to the FIR, substandard construction materials were allegedly used in the building, which was dilapidated, ARY News and the Tribune reported. The report says complaints had been made earlier about the walls and roofs, but the owners allegedly failed to act on concerns raised by children, both outlets said. An FIR opens a police case and is not a court charge. Police said they were working to arrest the suspects named in it, both outlets reported.
The school owner, Khan Muhammad, was taken into custody, the Tribune reported. The school stood on a 16-marla plot that was leased in 2024 before the building went up, both outlets reported.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's government ordered a fact-finding inquiry and a structural safety audit of schools across the province, the Tribune reported. The provincial government also formed district committees to inspect private school buildings and report back within three days, ARY News reported.
The collapse has renewed concerns about the safety of school buildings in Pakistan, the Tribune reported. In June, 14 children died when the roof of a private tuition center collapsed in Lahore, the paper said.
What we know: Police have filed a case against the school's owners, shareholders and contractor, alleging substandard materials and ignored complaints.
What we don't: The final death toll, and whether those named in the case will be charged in court.
Where outlets agree The Express Tribune and ARY News both report that police registered a case against the school's owners, shareholders and contractor under Section 322 and that 30 children and a teacher were killed.
Where they differ The outlets cited here report the same key facts so far.