ISLAMABAD: A 45-year-old man committed suicide by setting himself on fire outside the Prime Minster Secretariat on Friday.

The deceased was identified as Faisal Mehmood, a native of Murree.

According to the police, a handwritten note was recovered from the victim mentioning the circumstances under which he took the extreme step.

However, it could not be ascertained how the note remained intact when the victim was completely burnt.

According to the note, the deceased had submitted a complaint to the Prime Minister Secretariat which was forwarded to the city police officer and the district police officer Rawalpindi for further action.

“Daily I visited the offices of the police but was not allowed entry. I don’t trust the police any longer,” the deceased wrote, adding the police had also registered fake cases against him.

According to officials of the administration and police, the man entered the Red Zone on foot most probably from Nadra Headquarters side carrying a bottle full of petrol.

Judicial inquiry ordered to ascertain how the 45-year-old from Murree entered Red Zone on foot carrying bottle of petrol

He reached the PM Secretariat gate No 2 and sprinkled petrol on his body to commit self-immolation.

When onlookers and police reached the spot, he had burnt completely.

Later, paramedics were called to the area who shifted the man to the burn centre of Pims where he died.

Station House Officer (SHO) Secretariat Mr Asim told Dawn that the deceased was a proclaimed offender wanted by the Murree police in connection with a child abuse case.

“He was also a drug addict and mentally disturbed too. Besides, his family had disowned him,” the SHO said, adding the deceased had some grievances against the Murree and Rawalpindi police.

The police have registered the incident in its daily diary, he added.

When contacted, Anis Mehmood, a brother of the deceased, told Dawn that he had no information about the cases registered against his brother.

He said his brother had submitted a complaint to the PM Secretariat against the police but no action was taken over it.

Judicial inquiry ordered

Chief Commissioner Islamabad Amir Ahmed Ali ordered a judicial inquiry into the incident.

A notification issued from the office of the chief commissioner said: “It has come to knowledge of the competent authority that on April 3 Faisal Mehmood, 45, has passed away due to burns within jurisdiction of Islamabad. Facts of which are required to be ascertained through a judicial inquiry.”

The chief commissioner appointed District Magistrate [Deputy Commissioner] Mohammad Hamza Shafqaat to conduct the inquiry and submit a report within 48 hours.

Meanwhile, officials said the chief commissioner and the deputy commissioner expressed displeasure over the incident that took place in the heavily guarded area.

The judicial inquiry was ordered to establish the facts over police failure to check and intercept the man who moved in the Red Zone on foot carrying a bottle of petrol and reached the Prime Minister Secretariat.

“The prime responsibility of the police is to protect the life and properties of the citizens and ensure security of important and sensitive installations,” the top administration officers told senior police officers, according the officials.

Published in Dawn, April 4th, 2020