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Pak rejects joint probe in Chamel Singh’s death

Kashmir Times. Dated: 4/2/2013 12:22:25 AM

NEW DELHI, Apr 1 (Agencies): Pakistan on Monday refused to conduct a joint probe into the death of Indian prisoner Chamel Singh.
According to a news channel, Pakistan’s foreign office said they would not order a joint probe as the Indian High Commission did not participate in the autopsy conducted on Singh’s body. The channel reported that the Indian office in Pakistan did not participate in the autopsy, conducted two months after Singh was killed, as they did not have medical experts in their team. They also added that there was no formal request asking that they participate in the procedure.
India’s foreign office had earlier this month taken up the issue with its Pakistan counterpart asking that a probe be ordered into the death of the prisoner. India has also conveyed its concern to Pakistani authorities over the unnecessary delay in providing details of post-mortem and other details, they said.
On 13 March, the Pakistan authorities conducted the autopsy in Lahore and handed over the mortal remains of Singh the same day, the sources said, adding Indian High Commission officials received his body on March 13 itself and immediately transported it to the Attari International Check Post where it was handed over to members of his family in the presence of representatives of Jammu and Kashmir government.
On the statement by Pakistan Foreign Ministry spokesperson that an Indian official was present during the post-mortem, the sources said “no official from the High Commission was present during the autopsy. An autopsy is a specialized medical procedure where members of a diplomatic mission cannot have any role.
“Indian officials in Islamabad have not been present in any such autopsy either in this case or any other time in the past,” the sources added.
They also criticised Pakistan for delaying the post-mortem of Chamel Singh, saying “there is no explanation why the Pakistan authorities took almost two months to conduct the autopsy and hand over the body.”
Giving the chronology of events since Singh’s death, the sources said Pakistani authorities informed the Indian mission about the death of Singh on January 17 two days after his death. “In its first intimation, the Pakistan authorities did not specify the cause of death. As per procedure, the mission requested that the body be handed over at the earliest.”
“However, subsequently, around the last week of January following several local media reports that Singh had been mercilessly beaten by the jail authorities, the High Commission made a demarche (i.e, January 26) to the Pakistan authorities to provide a full report about the circumstances surrounding his death and a copy of the post mortem report. Several reminders were sent thereafter.”
The sources also added “the High Commission continues to press the Pakistan authorities for a copy of the post-mortem report. The last such effort was made on 27 March 2013.”