Islamabad: Fourteen infants were killed on Wednesday morning after a fire swept through the gynaecology ward of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS).
Health Minister Mustafa Kamal said the blaze erupted around 6:45 am following an air conditioner explosion inside the facility. Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif subsequently suspended the federal health secretary and ordered a high level inquiry.
The tragedy follows a history of operational failures at Islamabad's main public hospital. Three years ago, four patients died in the emergency ward over two days due to heat exhaustion caused by broken air conditioning units. An ad hoc management system was cited for those deaths. Subsequent inspections by the federal ombudsperson’s office faced protests from young doctors, who accused Executive Director Rana Imran Sikander of mismanaging the hospital and covering up structural issues with temporary measures.
Political figures across party lines have expressed outrage over the deaths:
Senator Sherry Rehman called the incident a "deep stain of shame" on the ministry and the systemic rot within, asking if this was what could be expected of a place where citizens were sent to heal.
PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari wrote on X: “Mothers do not keep their children in the womb for nine months just so that, due to someone’s negligence, they burn alive as soon as they are born.” Describing the incident as “one of the most horrific tragedies in human history”, he said: “The helpless fathers, whose lamps of hope were extinguished the very instant they were lit, are seeking justice.”. His party colleague Sharmila Faruqui stated that if moral responsibility exists, Mustafa Kamal should resign immediately rather than using the health secretary as a scapegoat.
Former finance minister and Awaam Pakistan leader Minister Miftah Ismail demanded for a “full investigation” into the incident. “This is beyond tragic. This is criminal negligence. There should be full investigation and accountability and heads must roll,” he said on X. Former Senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar stated that PM Shehbaz taking notice was simply not enough.
