Police widen scope in PML-N worker Samia Chaudhry's murder case

LAHORE: Police have widened the scope of Samia Chaudhry’s murder case by including her husband and other relatives as part of the investigation. Police have also received her mobile phone data.  

Police have also taken eight employees of the Chamba House into custody. 

Samia Chaudhry was a PML-N worker who was married to Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) employee Asif Mahmood and was a mother of three.  She was a resident of Islamabad and on November 20 had left for Shorkot in a car along with several PML-N workers to attend a political rally.

She stayed in room number 26 on November 22 at the Chamba House where she was found dead under mysterious circumstances by the police on Saturday.

Samia’s husband, Asif Mehmood, took custody of the body and left for Islamabad.

An FIR for murder at the Race Course Police Station has been registered by Samia's husband against unknown persons. According to the FIR, the couple had been married for 19 years.

Asif Mehmood said that he last talked to his wife on November 24. He spoke to staff at the Chamba House on November 26 who told him that his wife was found dead.

The husband added that his wife was a relative of Harappa MNA Chaudhry Ashraf.

When Geo News contacted MNA Chaudhry Ashraf he said that Samia was resident of his constituency, but was not his relative. He said that she wanted to become a parliamentarian on a reserved seat.

"Sometimes people from the constituency say they are my relatives and I don't stop them," he said.

He added that when her husband called him saying that he was unable to contact her, Chaudhry Ashraf asked his personal assistant to look for her. He said that his assistant contacted the rest house where it was found out that the door of her room was open and she was dead.

Meanwhile, PML-N worker Salonia Raza who has seen the body said that it looked like Samia had been poisoned. 

Crime unit carrying out investigation: SSP Ali Raza

The evidence in the case has been gathered and the crime unit is carrying out its work, according to SSP Civil Lines Ali Raza.

The SSP Civil Lines while speaking to Geo News said that initially the cause of death cannot be established. Samples of things from Samia's room were sent to lab for testing, he said.

The SSP added that up till now no arrests were made in the case.

Case being inspected from all angles: DIG Operations

DIG Operations Dr Haider Ashraf said that the case was being inspected from all angles.

All evidences including CCTV video footage will be examined, he said, adding that the relatives of the deceased are also included in the investigation.

“Will reach any conclusion in 24 hours,” said DIG Operations.

Mystery surrounds investigations as well

With the end of the second day since Samia Chaudhry was found dead, mystery has engulfed the investigations into her death as well. Nothing has so far been revealed from the post-mortem report of the female PML-N activist, nor the police have succeeded in obtaining the CCTV footage of the federal lodges, she was staying in.

The investigations have been revolving around the deceased's mobile phone data and staff of the lodges.

The doctor who conducted autopsy on Samia and the investigating officer of the case could not answer as to why was she bleeding from nose and what for there was foam coming out of her mouth at the time she was found dead.

'Death not a murder'

On the other hand, Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah today said the post-mortem report of Samia Chaudhry does not substantiate her murder.

The statement is made while the forensic report to ascertain the cause of Samia's death is still being awaited, and the police say that until then they were not able to comment on the matter.