The petition notes that the outbreak killed nine, infected over 200 children at the KBV hospital since November 2025
A nurse takes a blood sample from a child for an HIV test at a clinic in South Africa. Photo: REUTERS/file
The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Thursday directed the provincial government to submit a detailed report within a fortnight in response to a petition alleging that over 200 children of industrial workers contracted human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and nine died due to negligence at a government hospital in Karachi.
The petition, filed by advocate Tariq Mansoor, alleged that the HIV outbreak at the Kulsum Bai Valika (KBV) Hospital in the Sindh Industrial Trading Estate (SITE) area was caused by the reuse of contaminated disposable syringes and gross medical negligence, resulting in the spread of infection to over 200 children, with several reported fatalities.
Sindh Chief Secretary, Labor and Human Resources, Health Secretary, Chairman and Commissioner of Sindh Employees Social Security Institution (SESSI), Chief Medical Officer of KBV Hospital, Chief Medical Officer of KBV Hospital (Suspended) Dr. Ghulam Mustufa Abro, Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan, Executive Director of Protection, Sindh, Secretary General of Human Rights in the Civil Service Police, Secretary General of Human Rights in the Civil Service and Civil Service Police. The Federal President of Pakistan was nominated as respondents.
Furthermore, a letter addressed to the Chief Secretary and other senior officials, dated March 31 and submitted by the lawyer, shared with Express Pakinomistnoted that the outbreak initially infected 84 children between November 2025 and February 2026.
The KBV hospital, functioning under the Sindh Employees Social Security Institution (SESSI), established under the Sindh Employees Social Security Act, 2016, is responsible for providing medical facilities to the insured workers and their dependents, the petition said.
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A Division Bench comprising Justice Adnanul Karim Memon and Justice Adnan Iqbal Chaudhry was hearing the instant constitutional petition, filed under Article 199 of the Constitution, for enforcement of the fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 4, 9, 10-A, 14, 19-A, 25, 38 and 37.
During the hearing, the petitioner’s lawyer told the court that the provincial government showed “gross negligence and carelessness” in addressing the health emergency.
He claimed that the repeated use of previously used syringes at the public hospital led to the outbreak of HIV among minors.
“Nine children have died due to the HIV outbreak while hundreds of others have reportedly contracted the virus,” the petitioner argued before the SHC, adding that eight months had passed since the death of the nine children but no legal action had been initiated on their behalf.
In an address to the court, the trial leader maintained that international organizations, including the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), had also expressed concern about the situation.
He highlighted that the hospital dealt with a large number of patients on a daily basis and owed a “statutory duty” to provide safe and adequate medical care.
Recalling a notice issued by the Labor and Human Resources Department to the SESSI commissioner on April 14 to provide a comprehensive report, the public interest lawyer said: “The investigation report has neither been submitted to the court nor made available to any other party.”
Meanwhile, the petition also noted, “The respondents have failed to fulfill their statutory and constitutional obligations by failing to conduct an independent investigation, failing to register criminal cases against those responsible, failing to ensure comprehensive screening and treatment of affected patients and failing to frame the rules under Section 10 of the Sindh20 Syring10 Ordinance and Control of Disposal.”
“Such inaction … amounts to arbitrary exercise of authority and violates the fundamental rights of the affected children, their families and the public,” it further read.
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Advocate Mansoor lamented that only the health secretary was authorized to initiate FIRs against suspects involved in the HIV outbreak under the existing legal framework.
He pleaded with the court that if it did not intervene, hundreds of children could lose their chance at life.
Justice Memon observed that although the matter was serious, the provincial high court was bound to proceed in accordance with the established legal procedure.
He said the court would conclude only after receiving responses from all parties.
At the end of the hearing, the court directed the government to submit a detailed investigation report within two weeks. The court also issued notices to the respondents for their reply and adjourned the hearing till July 20.
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