The anti-terrorism court found that the men set the factory on fire because the owners did not accept their extortion demands and did not pay them.
Four of the eight accused in the case were found to be complex, while the other four were acquitted, the then industry minister Rauf Siddiqui, defense adviser Abid Zaman told reporters outside the court.
Siddiqui belongs to the Mutahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MKMP), which has been embroiled in years of violent political rivalry in Karachi and is now a partner in Prime Minister Imran Khan’s coalition government.
Rehman Bhola and Zubair Charia, both MQM activists, were sentenced to death.
As many as 400 witnesses testified in 171 hearings over eight years.
While the MQM is part of the ruling coalition, the party split into several factions in 2017.
Existing M.K.M. The leadership denies being involved in the fire and says such activities were directed from abroad, where many important leaders, including the party’s founder Altaf Hussein, live in exile and are now British citizens.
The party says it has severed all ties with Hussein.
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