Problem with parsing a multiline field in a control file

[gurunars]

STEPS TO REPRODUCE:

1. There is a .dcs file (lets say autotest-client.dsc) with the following content:

Format: 1.0
Source: autotest-client
Binary: core-autotest-tests, core-autotest-client, core-autotest-userspace, core-autotest-nokia-kernel, core-autotest-kernel-org, core-autotest-bonnie, core-autotest-nokia-fb, core-autotest-nokia-passwd, core-autotest-nokia-bluetooth, core-autotest-nokia-display, core-autotest-nokia-vibra, core-autotest-nokia-accelerometer, core-autotest-nokia-kerneloops, core-autotest-nokia-wlan, core-autotest-selftest, core-autotest-cyclictest, core-autotest-signaltest, core-autotest-hackbench, core-autotest-nokia-pwrbutton, core-autotest-netperf2, core-autotest-nokia-basefiles, core-autotest-nokia-netbase, core-autotest-nokia-charge, core-autotest-nokia-audio, core-autotest-nokia-openssl, core-autotest-nokia-osso-prinfo, core-autotest-nokia-sudo, core-autotest-nokia-ncurses, core-autotest-nokia-libsysfs, core-autotest-nokia-libreadline, core-autotest-nokia-lsusb, core-autotest-nokia-busybox, core-autotest-rmaptest, core-autotest-posixtest, core-autotest-linus-stress, core-autotest-fsfuzzer,
 core-autotest-dbench, core-autotest-tbench
Architecture: armel
Version: 0.1-18+0m6
Maintainer: Mika Vuorela 
Standards-Version: 3.7.2
Build-Depends: debhelper (>= 5), libdb1-dev, libbmeipc-dev, libasound2-dev, libssl-dev, libsysfs-dev, libncurses5, libreadline4-dev, libpopt-dev
Checksums-Sha1: 
 946522ce83402c3a631966f2dd14abdb7dea9f7b 20929512 autotest-client_0.1-18+0m6.tar.gz
Files: 
 bcf04161d74203034fbf5b151b799eda 20929512 autotest-client_0.1-18+0m6.tar.gz

2. Open python shell (e.g. ipython) and execute the following:

from minideblib.ChangeFile import ChangeFile
file = ChangeFile()
file.load_from_file("/....../autotest-client.dsc")
file["binary"].split(", ")

EXPECTED OUTCOME:

The string stored inside 'file["binary"]' is splited into a list of strings

ACTUAL OUTCOME:

The exception is raised because in case of the content described above 'file["binary"]' is a list although a string is expected