Bereaved families want speedy identification of bodies

Islamabad

The ordeal of families of Wednesday’s Havelian air crash victims is not ending any time soon as it may take 6 to 8 days for the DNA verification process to conclude. Until then, bodies will remain stored in mortuaries of designated hospitals within Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

The charred bodies of only 5 of the 47 passengers on board the ill-fated aircraft were initially identifiable. Later, by Thursday evening, the dead bodies of airhostess Asma Adil; DC Chitral Usama Warraich, his wife Mehreen and child Mahrukh; ASF guards Ahsan Ghaffar and Sami Ullah, as well as Haji Takbeer and Mohammad Nawaz had also been identified. The process was continuing till the filing of this report. More than 18 dead bodies were being shifted to a cold storage in Rawat.

The remains of all victims were transported to Islamabad on three Army Aviation helicopters in two batches. The bodies were shifted from Abbottabad’s Ayub Medical Complex to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), where heartbroken families had converged to have their blood samples collected for DNA sampling. The tearful relatives were hoping against hope to identify their dear ones from any of their belongings that might have been packed with the bodies. They were certainly not prepared to wait for another 8 days to receive the bodies of their loved ones.

“The dead bodies will be handed over to relatives only after DNA verification, which may take between 6 to 8 days. Meanwhile, they will be kept in MH and CMH in Rawalpindi, and in PIMS and Polyclinic in Islamabad. We cannot leave room for any kind of error,” Minister for Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) Dr. Tariq Fazal Chaudhry stated during a media talk at PIMS.

“Bodies that are identified will be handed over to relatives after necessary documentation. DNA verification is a must for identification, and for that, I seek the cooperation of families as the process may take up to 8 days,” Dr. Tariq stated. He clarified that only close blood relatives (mother, father, brother, sister) of the victims can give blood samples for DNA testing; this does not include cousins.

MNA from Chitral Shahzada Iftikhar Uddin, who was also present at PIMS, urged the government to provide helicopter service for shifting of dead bodies to their hometown upon identification. “Please ponder over the fact that Chitral is a valley spread over 75 kilometres. We cannot prolong the agony of the victims’ families; the process has got to be swift,” he stressed. Iftikhar remembered Junaid Jamshed as a great person who had committed himself to promoting tourism in Chitral.

The Amir of Jamaat-e-Islami Sirajul Haq also visited PIMS to express support for families of the air crash victims. “While disasters are a part of life, lack of preparedness is a national crime. Trains and aircraft are the preferred transportation modes in every country worldwide. Why do our airplanes only meet such fatal disasters? Why was the ATR allowed to take off when there were suspicions about its airworthiness,” he questioned.

Sirajul Haq advised the government to let go of its traditional ‘Out of sight, Out of Mind’ policy. “This is no small issue; it will not be forgotten. We will raise our voice in the Parliament and the Senate. Our dilemma is that nobody in this country is prepared to accept responsibility for negligence and maladministration,” he pointed out.

Sirajul Haq said, those responsible for this national tragedy have got to be held accountable. “PIA must assume responsible; I was absolutely dissatisfied with the PIA chairman’s speech. He should have the moral courage to step down till such time that he is exonerated for the loss of so many precious lives. The entire nation stands by the families of the victims,” he said. Sirajul Haq also urged the government to ensure that the dead bodies are honourably transported to their hometowns upon completion of the identification process.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s Asad Umar, who also visited PIMS, claimed having mobilized his teams to keep an eye on any shortcomings that may need to be addressed in terms of offering facilitation to the victims’ families. He said PIA has arranged accommodation and food for families who wish to stay on in Islamabad till identification of dead bodies.

Politician Ahmed Raza Kasuri criticized the government for taking refuge behind democracy every time there is a demand for accountability. He demanded handing over of dead bodies to relatives within 24 hours. “You should work 24/7 and complete the process within 24 hours. At least 25 people are from Chitral; they cannot sit and wait here for 8 days,” Kasuri stated. He called for immediate resignation of PIA chairman, and demanded strictest possible action against those who allowed the flight to take off without NOC.

Meanwhile, Dr. Tariq Fazal is learnt to have lost his cool on the PIMS administration after he inspected the quality of arrangements made to facilitate families of the air crash victims. Ironically, PIMS had been in a state of emergency after the air crash, and even in that high state of preparedness, it succeeded in inviting the ire of the minister. Arrangements were thereafter improved upon.

Queries about expected arrival time of dead bodies were being addressed at the Facilitation Desk. Meanwhile, those wishing to get relevant information may establish contact with the PIMS Emergency Desk at 051-9260340 and 051-90712323. PIA too is learnt to have made food and accommodation arrangements for families keen to stay on in Islamabad till completion of the verification process.

Later in the evening, a collective funeral prayer (in absentia) for the victims was offered at PIMS. The chairman of PIA, former test cricketer Saqlain Mushtaq, Zamurrud Khan, and senior PTI officials, among others, attended the prayer. Ironically, nobody bothered to inform the relatives and family members of the air crash victims, who subsequently attended a second prayer.