Diana was on the Pill when she died: Coroner

The ongoing inquest into Princess Dianas death has further dismissed controversial claims about her being pregnant with boyfriend Dodi Al Fayeds child at the time of her death, by revealing that she was on contraceptive pills.

London, Oct 4 : The ongoing inquest into Princess Diana's death has further dismissed controversial claims about her being pregnant with boyfriend Dodi Al Fayed's child at the time of her death, by revealing that she was on contraceptive pills.

Lord Justice Scott Baker said that while it may never be possible to prove "100 per cent" whether Diana was pregnant, the inquest jury would hear "intimate details of her personal life" which appeared to show she was not.

Dodi's father and Harrods boss, Mohamed Al Fayed has consistently maintained that Diana was murdered in an Establishment conspiracy because she was pregnant by his son and about to announce her engagement to him, something the Royal family could not agree to.

However, Lord Justice Scott Baker cast serious doubt on Fayed's claims, giving the jury lengthy explanations of why the royal conspiracy theory was flawed.

"You will hear evidence that Diana was taking the contraceptive pill," the Daily Mail quoted him, as saying.

The Harrods tycoon has also claimed that Diana's body was embalmed by the French authorities to conceal the fact that she was carrying Dodi's child.

However, Lord Baker said that the decision to embalm hours after the Paris crash was taken only to preserve her body on a very hot day, and to "slow the process of decomposition".

According to the coroner, Diana had not given any indication to her doctor, family, friends or associates that she was pregnant, and no pregnancy test was carried out on at the hospital where she was taken on the night she died because there appeared no reason to do so.

"You will hear evidence concerning the extent to which a post mortem examiner can see physical signs of early pregnancy. For obvious reasons, there would not be much to see," he said.

"It is likely that pregnancy is a matter that cannot be proved one way or the other in scientific terms in this case. You will of course, consider the scientific evidence, such as it is, but you will also hear evidence from several sources about what Diana had to say to her friends, and intimate details of her personal life," he added.

The coroner also told the 11 members of the jury that he hoped to call Diana's former butler Paul Burrell to give evidence in person to address many of the areas of dispute.

In 2002, Burrell revealed how Diana's doctor prescribed her the contraceptive pill - always in the name of female servants.

ANI