KARACHI: The judicial commission formed to investigate the circumstances and possible negligence in the Mir Raza Ali murder case has assured the deceased’s family that it will conduct an impartial and independent probe without being influenced by anyone.

Justice Omar Sial of the Sindh High Court, who heads the one-man commission, also said he will not meet any official or government functionary, including the chief minister, during this period.

At the outset of the hearing on Friday, victim’s parents, Mir Hussain Ali Khan and Mariam Hussain, and sister, Alishba Khan, along with their lawyer Jibran Nasir appeared before the commission.

Justice Sial extended condolences to the bereaved family and said that he was aware of what the family was going through.

Justice Sial issues notices to MLO, others for Sept 1

Advocate Nasir alleged that police officials were being barred from performing their duties and that action was also being taken against those who were helping the family.

He also submitted that the police had yet to share anything with his client, Mir Hussain, who is the complainant of the murder case, about the investigation conducted so far, apart from copies of the testimonies of family members.

The lawyer further informed the commission that the victim had left his house at 4am on July 28 and, according to CCTV footage, was last seen at 4:30am. His body was shifted to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre on July 29, where the first post-mortem examination was conducted on the same day by Medico-Legal Officer (MLO) Dr Osama Sheikh.

He said that a kidnapping case was registered around 11 hours after the victim’s disappearance and that the body was recovered on the basis of information provided by two nursery employees, whom he identified as Yasir and Qaiser.

The commission asked the complainant to provide all the information, including details of the first three days.

It also made it clear that a petition filed by the family against the formation of the judicial commission had nothing to do with the commission’s proceedings and it would be proceeded with separately.

Justice Sial said that there was a difference between an inquiry and an investigation, as the commission could not investigate the case but could look into the matter in accordance with its terms of reference to determine possible negligence by medical and police officials during the investigation and make recommendations for further investigation.

He further said that the commission would release an advertisement asking anyone with information about the case to come forward and share it. The commission would also provide an email address and a WhatsApp number for this purpose.

He remarked that they would ask the provincial government to announce a reward of Rs100,000 each for those who provided specific information about the case.

The commission directed the provincial government to provide relevant documents related to the case, including statements of witnesses, medical reports and other relevant records, as well as details of police officers and doctors who had been associated with the case and its investigation.

The Sindh government’s focal person, who was in attendance during the hearing, assured the commission that all relevant records of the case would be provided.

Adjourning the hearing until Sept 1, the commission issued notices to MLO Dr Osama Sheikh, two nursery employees, two Edhi Foundation volunteers and four policemen who had initially arrived at the crime scene, directing them to appear before the commission and record their statements.

The provincial government has formed the judicial commission to probe the circumstances leading to the death of young entrepreneur Mir Raza, determining possible negligence by medical and police officials during the investigation as well as to make recommendations for further investigation and forensic analysis or legal/departmental action.

The 25-year-old businessman and IBA graduate had gone missing on July 28 after leaving his home in PECHS and his bullet-riddled body was found a day later in bushes in Gulistan-i-Jauhar.

The police had previously been building the case around the possibility that he has committed suicide while his family was convinced that he was kidnapped, tortured and murdered. However, after injury details from a second post-mortem examination ruled out the possibility of suicide, a murder charge was incorporated to the case.

Raza’s parents and his sister had opposed the formation of the judicial commission and challenged the same before the SHC, seeking directives for the provincial government to constitute a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) to probe the case.

Published in Dawn, August 29th, 2026