The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday formed a judicial commission to probe the killing of young Karachi businessman Mir Raza Ali.
SHC Justice Umar Sial has been appointed to head the commission. The chief justice of the high court issued a notification formalising his nomination, while the SHC Directorate informed the Sindh Home Department about the development.
Earlier in the day, Mir Raza’s family approached the SHC, seeking an empowered joint investigation team (JIT) instead of a judicial commission to investigate his death. The court admitted the petition for hearing.
Speaking to reporters outside the court, the family’s counsel, Jibran Nasir, raised concerns about the progress of the investigation and alleged that important evidence had not been properly secured by the police.
Nasir said questions had surrounded the probe from its early stages, particularly regarding geofencing and the collection and preservation of CCTV recordings relevant to the case.
He stated that the family was opposed to a judicial commission because its role would primarily be to submit findings, whereas the actual investigation should be conducted by law enforcement and other investigative bodies.
The lawyer also questioned how critical evidence could allegedly go missing during the initial phase of the investigation and asked why officials responsible for any negligence had not faced action. He said the government’s decision to appoint a high court judge to the proposed commission had not formally been communicated to the victim’s family. He added that the family had also written to the Sindh chief minister on the issue.
According to Nasir, a judicial commission could only be established following a recommendation by the relevant committee. He said the family had instead called for an empowered JIT with officials from different security and intelligence agencies.
Nasir further criticised the progress of the case, saying the investigating officers had appeared before a magistrate but had not identified any suspect or suggested that a supplementary challan was about to be filed.
He also demanded clarity over whether members of the previous investigation team had been questioned or subjected to any legal or departmental proceedings.
According to him, the family should be informed about any action taken against officials whose handling of the case is under scrutiny.
