Pakistani investigators concluded on Saturday that the abductors themselves had freed Shahbaz Taseer, the abducted son of late Punjab governor Salman Taseer.
“Abductors themselves had freed Shahbaz Taseer and he was not recovered in a raid by security forces,” the investigators said in their report to interior ministry, recommending action against the ones taking credit of the high-profile recovery.
Shahbaz Taseer (33) was kidnapped from the Gulberg area of Lahore on August 26, 2011, and since then it was feared he was held captive by militant groups.
He was kidnapped soon after his liberal father was assassinated by his radical bodyguard Mumtaz Qadri in January 2011, over his stance on the controversial blasphemy law.
Qadri was executed earlier in March in Rawalpindi.
Shahbaz was freed on March 8 after being held “captive” for nearly five years. Following his recovery, Balochistan government spokesman Anwarul Haq Kakar had claimed Shahbaz was freed in a “successful operation” by security forces from a hotel in Taliban-dominated Kuchlak town.
But a committee set up by interior minister Nisar Ali Khan to probe the circumstances surrounding the freedom of Shahbaz has disputed the claim by the Balochistan government.
“The facts and evidence show that Shahbaz Taseer was not released through an operation by security forces but set free by the captors,” the interior ministry said in a statement.
The report said that it was not clear why the kidnappers set him free or if they were paid any ransom.
It also said that no one is allowed to use the issue to link it with their performance.
“Those involved in using it for personal advancement will be sternly warned,” the statement said on Saturday.
After the interior ministry’s reaction to this episode, Mr Kakar said the that the Balochistan government stood by its official statement.
