Mir Raza case: Family’s lawyer flags SHO, business partners
The joint investigation team (JIT) probing the murder of young Karachi businessman Mir Raza Ali held its first meeting on Saturday, reviewing the judicial commission’s report in detail and recording the family’s statements.
The 25-year-old’s case has been under investigation since his body was found last July.
The meeting was held at the DIG West office under the chairmanship of DIG West Irfan Ali Baloch.
Representatives of the ISI, the Intelligence Bureau, Pakistan Rangers and the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) attended, along with police officers, the victim’s family and their lawyer. The relevant agencies had been directed to send officers of Grade 18 or above.
The JIT recorded the family’s position and examined the evidence they presented. It also reviewed the material and findings of the earlier investigation team.
Lawyer raises concerns
Speaking to the media in Karachi after the meeting, family lawyer Jibran Nasir said all of the family’s concerns had been placed before the JIT. He expressed hope that future investigations would be better.
He called for an investigation into the Ferozabad SHO and Mir Raza’s business partners, Ahmed and Abdullah Bharde.
He said the SHO’s role was “suspicious” and that it was also an important question how Ahmed and others had so much information about certain matters.
The JIT had also been informed about the role of persons close to Mir Raza, he said.
Nasir said Mir Raza’s father had recorded his statement before the JIT, and that DIG Baloch had assured the family he would be summoned again if needed.
Since the murder took place in Karachi, he said, further evidence could still be gathered.
“Our killers should be brought before us,” he said, demanding that those involved be identified and all facts made clear.
He also questioned why the judicial commission’s recommendations had not been implemented so far. He said the family would write to the Establishment Division and the Sindh chief minister on Monday.
JIT formed on Home Department orders
The JIT was constituted on the orders of the Sindh Home Department. The murder case is registered at Ferozabad police station. The team has been tasked with examining all aspects of the incident and advancing the investigation in light of the evidence.
Mir Raza left home on July 28, and his body was found the next day in the Gulistan-e-Jauhar area. Suicide was initially suggested as a possibility, but the family suspected murder and demanded a full investigation.
The body was exhumed on Aug. 8 and a second post-mortem was conducted. The second report’s details on the bullet wound and its path through the body were described as inconsistent with the initial suicide theory. A murder charge was then added to the case.
On Aug. 24, the Sindh government set up a judicial commission headed by Sindh High Court Justice Omar Sial. It examined the circumstances of the incident, the police’s initial investigation, the medical evidence and the method of evidence collection.
On Sept. 2, the Sindh High Court rejected the family’s request for an independent, multi-agency JIT, ruling that forming one was the government’s prerogative.
On Oct. 20, the commission’s 62-page report termed the police investigation a serious failure and declared Mir Raza’s death a murder. It identified grave flaws in the police probe and recommended forming a JIT and examining possible negligence or tampering with evidence.
Following those recommendations, the Sindh government formed the JIT on Oct. 24 under DIG Baloch, with representatives of Rangers, federal intelligence agencies and the NCCIA. NCCIA Deputy Director Shahzad Akbar was later added to examine digital evidence, including mobile phone, social media and cryptocurrency records.