ISLAMABAD, March 8: Anwer Ali, member (technical), Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission, is being tipped as the next chairman of the Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) after the retirement of its present chairman Dr Javed Ashraf Mirza next month, sources said.

They said KRL's restructuring was in the offing and most of its senior officials were likely to be replaced by those working at present in other departments and in the army.

Mr Anwar Ali was one of the founding members of the KRL but was transferred by President Gen Ziaul Haq to the PAEC when he reportedly developed differences with the then KRL chairman Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan, the sources said.

Director-General of the Inter-Services Public Relations, Maj-Gen Shaukat Sultan, said he had no knowledge about the reports that Anwar Ali was being appointed new KRL chief. "I cannot comment on it," he added.

He further said that no restructuring of the KRL was taking place. "Its an internal matter of the KRL and need not be discussed in the media," he said. Chairman of the Strategic Planning Division, Lt-Gen Khalid Amin Qidwai, who is the head of all nuclear and atomic energy departments, could not be contacted for comments. However, his ADC, Capt Qasim Hameed, told Dawn that Lt-Gen Qidwai was attending some function and, therefore, he could not attend the telephone call.

Meanwhile, the government arranged meetings of all detained officials of the KRL with their family members at the KRL Mess in Rawalpindi, sources close to their family members said. They said all detained officials appeared to be weak and in bad health. "All of them have lost weight," some relatives of a detained official said.