A Senate committee has sought detailed records and relevant laws after questioning officials over the death of a Gujranwala Waste Management Company (GWMC) sanitary worker, who allegedly took his own life following a dispute over salary payments and the termination of his employment.
The issue triggered a heated exchange between PML-N Senator Khan and ANP Senator Ali during the Senate Functional Committee meeting. Tensions escalated as Khan questioned officials over the circumstances surrounding the worker’s death, prompting Ali to object to the manner of questioning. Other senators, including Qurratulain Marri, intervened to calm the situation.
Officials informed the committee that the worker had been employed by GWMC from 2024 to 2025 and that his contract expired on May 31. They said the alleged suicide occurred after his employment had ended.
Senator Khan alleged that the worker had received only half of his salary, arguing that financial difficulties had pushed the labourer to take his own life. However, the GWMC chief executive officer rejected the claim, saying bank records showed that the worker had received his full salary and that he had faced performance-related issues.
The committee also questioned the practice of hiring sanitary workers through third-party contractors instead of directly recruiting them under Suthra Punjab.
Senator Marri questioned how recruitment had been carried out before the Suthra Punjab Act came into force in 2026, given that the incident occurred in 2025.
The GWMC CEO told the committee that the worker had initially been hired through a contractor in 2025 and was later rehired and posted as a naib qasid in the IT room of the Suthra Punjab office. He was subsequently dismissed over alleged misconduct, officials said.
The committee was also informed that financial assistance had been provided to the deceased worker’s widow and children, including a plot purchased with assistance from a chamber of commerce.
During the proceedings, officials suggested that the worker may have been facing personal problems. The ANP chief rejected the suggestion and criticised what he described as an unsubstantiated allegation concerning the worker’s personal life.
The committee directed Suthra Punjab officials to submit all relevant documents, including copies of the laws applicable in 2025 and 2026. It also sought details of any grievance-redress mechanism available to workers beyond financial compensation.
The chairperson directed that the deceased worker’s family be invited to the next committee meeting to present its position.
The committee had previously taken up the matter after a Suthra Punjab worker in Gujranwala set himself on fire on July 1 in protest against alleged non-payment of his full salary. He died from his injuries two days later.
According to CCTV footage, the worker had visited an office to lodge a complaint against a contractor before dousing himself with petrol in a corridor. Other employees present at the scene attempted to rescue him by throwing water on him.
An official had alleged that the contractor was illegally deducting a significant portion of the workers’ monthly salary of Rs21,000.
On July 17, the Senate Functional Committee on Human Rights expressed concern over the incident and sought employment contracts, salary registers, tax records and banking transactions to determine whether any violations had occurred. It also sought details of compensation and insurance provided to the worker’s family.
The committee also reviewed several other cases, including the disappearance and death of Mir Raza. The Additional Inspector General (IG) Sindh briefed the committee on the investigation, while senators questioned the need for a second post-mortem.
Officials said the SHO had failed to preserve the crime scene and had instead shifted the body to a hospital. The SHO and DSP were subsequently suspended for negligence, while the committee recommended the arrest of the SHO.
The committee also reviewed the August 16, 2023 Jaranwala incident. Officials said 389 people had been arrested, while several cases were either under trial or had been concluded.
The chairperson expressed concern over delays in the cases, stressing that the incident involved a minority community and required an urgent resolution.
Senator Ali called for justice and adequate compensation for the affected families. Officials said an assessment committee would determine the losses and that Rs2 million would be provided to each affected family. However, the families maintained that the proposed amount did not reflect their actual losses.
The committee directed authorities to determine compensation based on the actual damage suffered by the victims.
The panel also reviewed the target killing case of Ahmed Javed. Officials informed the committee that the main accused, who was currently out on bail, was appearing in court accompanied by 40 to 50 people, allegedly intimidating witnesses.
The committee recommended approaching the court to prevent the accused from bringing large groups to court proceedings.
Senator Khan also criticised the performance of the Counter Crime Department (CCD) in Punjab and the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The chairperson questioned the performance of the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) in dealing with alleged malicious material uploaded on social media by the accused.
