KATHMANDU: He lived in the midst of controversy and died leaving the cause of his death shrouded in mystery. That seems to give the commission investigating the February 7 murder of media entrepreneur Jamim Shah a tough time. Now, the four-member panel headed by he Supreme Court’s former chief judge Gobinda Parajuli finds itself battling to put the dots together to draw a picture. And, that appears a bit too difficult.

The investigating officials have collected information from all possible sources but the panel has a mound of paper work to do before being able to establish the motive behind Jamim’s murder, investigating those involved in the shooting and submitting the report.

“We hope to accomplish the job in another three weeks or so,” Parajuli told The Himalayan Times. The original 15-day deadline was not enough and the commission had it extended twice.

“We have asked the government to extend the Commission’s term by a month, though,” said Deputy Inspector General of Police Rajendra Singh Bhandari. “We need more time to interpret the intriguing facts and draw the conclusions,”

There are some difficult challenges, stemming from “Jamim’s controversial past”. So, the panel is expected to zero in on these issues while preparing the report: Did Jamim’s past — his reported link with underworld don Dawood Ibrahim — have anything to do with the murder? Why did Babloo Srivastav plan and order the

murder? Or, was he killed because of his own personal

enmity?

Making a clear-cut statement, as the terms of reference dictate, is bound to be extremely difficult “for the lack of

credible evidence to corroborate the claim.”

The panel is in its final stage, according to commission sources. “About 100 people from different walks of life

have been interrogated so far,” said Parajuli. “This particular investigation has been most puzzling.”

The issue has partly been complicated because former Deputy Superintendent of Police Jagdish Chand is at large. Information from him would have played a crucial role in drawing the conclusions, according to the investigating officials. How the former police officer managed to make an escape could itself figure prominently in the report, which will probably have many holes.

Will the panel report be credible enough? As facts tend to suggest at the moment, it looks rather difficult.

That’s the real FEAR, according to Bhandari, who defines the word as an acronym for Fake Evidence Appears Real — whatever that would mean.

Establishing the linkages and joining the dots could

hardly help build the picture. And, the cause of Jamim’s murder could remain an

unsolved mystery even if the commission comes up with a voluminous, descriptive report.