THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: While the forensic report on the fire in the protocol department of the Secretariat states that fire was not caused by a short circuit, the state police have rejected the report. The police, which maintains that the fire was caused by a short circuit, also went on to release a graphical video which shows that the fire erupted from a wall-mounted fan. According to the police, a short circuit was caused when someone accidentally switched on a faulty fan in the protocol section. The fire erupted due to overheating of motor winding due to poor installation. The overheating caused a spark, which eventually resulted in a fire that spread to nearby files and curtain, police said.

Earlier, the forensic report stated that there was no evidence to prove that the fire was caused by a short circuit. The chemistry department also did not find any evidence of the presence of any chemical. Although the examination revealed that two liquor bottles contained traces of alcohol, police said that there is no mystery regarding this.