Justice where it is due

Kamran Faisal deserves a fair inquiry

While the news of NAB officer Kamran Faisal’s death is a saddening one, the mysterious circumstances surrounding his death make it worth the time and attention it is receiving from media, judiciary and police. Considering the fact that he was the one who wrote a report on the high profile Rental Power Projects case that led the Supreme Court to issue arrest orders for all involved including Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, the incident deserves a fair investigation.

It is way too early to name names or even start blaming, but the deceased’s family has called for a suo motu notice by the SC, claiming that there were injury marks on Kamran’s body, contrary to the preliminary autopsy report by a team of doctors which paints it a suicide citing the lack of injuries, though they are still withholding the final report pending some forensic tests to ascertain the real cause of his death. Though a judicial inquiry and a police investigation are underway, the family of the deceased has demanded that the SC took a suo motu of the incident not just because of its high profile status but because in case there really was something out of the way in the circumstances leading up to Kamran’s death.

As a Deputy Director, NAB, Kamran was sure to face pressure from different quarters. His job description meant that he had to deal with country’s some of the most corrupt, and of course powerful, people ranging from businessmen to politicians. The way he requested the SC to drop him off the RPP case suggests he was under pressure, though one should not read into it much before the inquiry is finalised. That he was an honest officer who probably lost his life in the line of duty calls for an even vigorous effort from the judiciary and police to find out the truth. As a first good step, four of his colleagues have been asked to record their statements to the police. While this is a step in the right direction, the police and NAB should stop bickering over who reached the alleged crime scene and focus on the investigation.

However, it is the state that stands to lose from this tragic incident. Apart from losing an honest officer, the state has also hurt the morale of an institution which already doesn’t enjoy much credibility, the NAB, and sent a message to other officers working in the same capacity to fear for their life more than anything else. If Kamran is not provided a fair inquiry, many more would lose trust in the state, the LEAs, justice system and bureaucracy. With elections just around the corner, the country can in no way afford such lapses.