Punjab forensic lab report 'confirms KP CM’s presence' in May 9 videos

Lahore (Web Desk): The Punjab Forensic Science Laboratory (PFSL) has completed its verification of video material linked to the May 9 violence in Peshawar, confirming that Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Sohail Afridi appears in the footage along with other Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leaders including Kamran Bangash, Taimur Jhagra and Irfan Saleem.

The process was carried out after Peshawar Police asked the laboratory to authenticate the recordings.

A USB drive holding 16 separate video files, submitted by Police Station Sharqi, was handed over to PFSL for examination. Specialists conducted a detailed audio-visual review of all the material provided by the police.

According to the forensic findings, each video was examined frame by frame. Several clips showed no signs of interference, but others revealed that people and written elements had been digitally added. In two recordings featuring Chief Minister Afridi and Irfan Saleem, experts also identified evidence that different segments had been stitched together.

To confirm identities, PFSL matched the profile photographs of Sohail Afridi, Irfan Saleem, Kamran Bangash and Taimur Jhagra with the individuals seen in the footage. In every case, the people appearing in the videos were verified to be the same as those in the reference images.

The forensic analysis was conducted between December 19 and December 23, 2025, and the laboratory clarified that its review was limited strictly to visual content.

Earlier, the Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) had directed the police to obtain a forensic assessment of the footage as part of the investigation into the attack on Radio Pakistan.