Karachi: At least two women were crushed to death and several others injured at a charity handout on Monday.
The incident took place at a function hall in Gulshan Iqbal town, when an organisation was distributing food and goods for Ramadan.
Hundreds of women, children and men rushed to the hall but instead of queuing up began pushing each other. Two women were killed, with others being rushed to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for treatment. Police said the two women died of suffocation and multiple injuries.
Senior police officer Imran Shaukat said that several men were rounded up for causing the stampede. However, he said that police were not informed by the organisation that they would be distributing the rations or that such a huge number of people would turn up.
Such incidents occur frequently in Pakistan. In 2009, 20 women and children were crushed in a stairway and alley when charity workers were handing out free flour during Ramadan.
A recent study of Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) said that every third Pakistani in a population of 180 million lives below poverty line.
