kamran-faisal-case-AP-670
Hamid Munir, centre, a brother-in-law of Kamran Faisal, talks to reporters at the Supreme Court in Islamabad, Jan 24, 2013. — Photo by AP

ISLAMABAD, Feb 13: Punjab’s forensic experts issued their report on Wednesday on the Jan 18 death of National Accountability Bureau (NAB) investigator Kamran Faisal.

According to the report, there were no signs of torture on the body and he had not taken any poison before hanging himself from the ceiling fan of his room in Federal Lodges.

“We have sent the forensic report to the medical board formed for this case and the final medical report will be submitted before the Supreme Court soon,” Islamabad police chief Bani Amin told Dawn.

He said the board would first examine the report and then prepare one of its own.

The Supreme Court took suo motu notice on Jan 23 of the death of Mr Faisal, who was investigating the Rs22 billion Rental Power Projects (RPPs) case in which Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf is also an accused. His death came days after the court ordered the arrest of the prime minister and 15 others in connection with the scam.

It has been learnt that the forensics team found similarities between the DNA test of the body and the rope used for hanging.

A preliminary medical report issued on Jan 28 had said that there was no injury mark on the body and apparently the official had committed suicide.

Members of Mr Faisal’s family rejected the report and stuck to their stance that he had not committed suicide, but had been murdered.

A four-member team of forensic experts from Punjab visited the room of Mr Faisal on Feb 6 and examined different articles used by him to ascertain the cause of his death and gather related information.

The team, headed by Ghulam Abbas, had taken snaps of internal and external views of the room.

Zafar Iqbal, the NAB spokesman, said the forensic report had not been shared with the bureau because it had been prepared on the directives of the investigating agency (police) and would be submitted to it.

“NAB believes that whoever is mandated to investigate Kamran’s case should be given a fair chance without casting any doubt for an independent and impartial inquiry,” he said.

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