Karachi: A judicial commission headed by Sindh High Court (SHC) Justice Omar Sial has heard detailed testimonies from family members and rescue volunteers investigating the murder of 25 year old entrepreneur Mir Raza Ali. Appointed by the Sindh government to examine procedural lapses and police performance, Justice Sial assured the grieving family that commission proceedings would remain entirely open and transparent.
During the maiden hearings, Mir Raza's parents and sister outlined the circumstances surrounding his disappearance on July 28 from Karachi’s Ferozabad area, detailing missing personal belongings, suspicious financial inquiries from associates, and initial delays by local police in registering a formal First Information Report (FIR).
Testimonies were also delivered by Edhi rescue volunteers Mohsin and Javed, who described the recovery of Mir Raza’s body from an elevated area near a guesthouse in Gulistan e Jauhar on 29 July. The volunteers testified that police were already present at the scene when they arrived, and that assistance from nearby nursery workers was required to retrieve the body from the terrain. They noted an apparent gunshot wound and stated that investigating officers failed to contact them for follow up statements after the initial recovery, highlighting potential gaps in the early collection of witness accounts.
Simultaneously, the Sindh Police spokesperson released the final postmortem report compiled by an eight member medical board following the court ordered exhumation of Mir Raza's body. The comprehensive examination conclusively rejected the initial suicide theory, establishing that a bullet entered his upper left back, fractured his sixth rib, and passed through his chest, causing fatal damage to his heart and lung.
Significant gunshot residue was identified around the back entry wound and corresponding shirt fabric. The medical board also documented extensive physical trauma, including fractures to his jaw, skull, nasal bone, and a 12 centimetre fracture along his right thigh.
The forensic findings follow the identification of 14 major deficiencies in the original autopsy by the Karachi police surgeon, including the failure to take initial X-rays, record injury measurements, or preserve hand samples for gunshot residue. While the SHC recently dismissed a petition seeking a multidisciplinary Joint Investigation Team (JIT) because the judicial commission and police inquiries were active, family lawyer Jibran Nasir maintained that documented evidence failures justify higher judicial review. The commission continues to examine CCTV footage, missing business documents, and unrecovered physical evidence as it works to establish full accountability in the case.
