Failure beyond negligence

In Mir Raza Ali's murder case, precisely such a breakdown appears to have occurred, with investigators disregarding elementary procedures, defending questionable conclusions and compromising the very evidence needed to establish culpability.

This is what the judicial commission has uncovered.Consider the circumstances surrounding Ali's death.

His body was discovered in bushes in Karachi's Gulistan-e-Jauhar, yet police hastily pursued a suicide theory, citing financial difficulties and an initial post-mortem examination that was subsequently contradicted.

A second autopsy established that he had been shot from behind, while the commission identified acid burns, traces of anesthesia in his blood and a bullet trajectory incompatible with suicide.

The pistol he was seen carrying in CCTV footage remains missing.

Despite these glaring inconsistencies, crucial evidence was mishandled and investigative procedures disregarded.

Particularly damning is the commission's finding of criminal negligence by the SHO and the first investigating officer.

Such serious lapses demand an explanation of how a suspected murder was allowed to become a deeply compromised investigation.Accountability must now take precedence over institutional damage control.

The Sindh government should immediately constitute the JIT recommended by the commission, ensuring that it operates independently of officers implicated in the original inquiry.

Criminal negligence identified on the part of the SHO and investigating officers must be followed by disciplinary proceedings, while an independent inquiry should determine whether evidence was deliberately destroyed or concealed.

With much of the physical evidence already compromised, investigators must prioritise available digital and forensic evidence.

Public disclosure of the inquiry's progress and regular communication with the family are essential to restoring confidence in the investigation.