Following an investigation into the fire that broke out at the Kerala Secretariat on August 25, it was found that electrical malfunction was not the cause of the incident. This was said in a forensic report, based on the preliminary analysis of objects collected from the spot. The report was submitted to the judicial first-class magistrate court in Thiruvananthapuram.
Investigators had collected 45 material objects from the scene for criminological examination to determine the cause of the fire. The preliminary findings were submitted recently to the court in a sealed cover. The report submitted was prepared after examining electric wire samples and some other objects out of the 45 materials.
The forensic laboratory is in the process of reviewing the rest of the evidence. The final report, reportedly, is yet to prepared and the police will reach a conclusion only after analysing all the objects collected from the site.
Two teams were appointed by the government to probe the fire incident. One was a Special Investigation Team headed by Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Manoj Abraham, while the other was led by Disaster Management Commissioner A Kowsigan.
The team led by the Commissioner has ruled out any foul play, and has declared that the fire was not caused by an electrical short circuit.
The Congress and the BJP had alleged that the fire was an attempt to destroy files connected with the ongoing controversial gold smuggling case in the state. The government, however, maintained that there was no question of destruction of the physical files as they were converted to digital copies.
Also Read: Fire at Kerala Secretariat: Govt says all files safe, Opposition continues protest