KARACHI: The family of a young Pakistani entrepreneur found shot dead in Karachi demanded on Monday the release of a judicial inquiry report into a headline-grabbing case that has prompted widespread protests and allegations of police negligence.

Mir Raza Ali, the 25-year-old owner of dessert business Wafflix, disappeared on July 28 and was found dead the following day. His family challenged investigators’ initial suggestion of suicide, and a second autopsy, conducted after his body was exhumed, found a gunshot wound to his upper back and other injuries.

The case has drawn scrutiny of police investigations and forensic procedures in Pakistan’s largest city and commercial hub. The Sindh provincial government established a judicial commission in August to examine the circumstances surrounding Ali’s death and possible negligence in the investigation, following protests demanding answers and accountability.

The judicial commission, headed by Sindh High Court Justice Omar Sial, submitted its sealed report to the provincial government on Oct. 15. It recorded testimony from 49 people during 15 hearings, examining both the circumstances of Ali’s death and the handling of evidence. Its conclusions and recommendations have not been made public.

“Our demand from day one has been for a joint investigation team,” the family’s lawyer, Jibran Nasir, told Arab News on Monday. “The report and all documents should be shared with the family.”

The circumstances and motive behind Ali’s death remain disputed.

“Considerable government and judicial resources have been spent on the commission’s proceedings ... The report should be made public to bring the proceedings to their logical conclusion,” the lawyer added.

Abdul Rasheed Channa, a spokesperson for Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, has said the report will be opened and presented to the provincial cabinet, which will decide on its implementation. The cabinet is scheduled to meet on Tuesday.

Channa had not responded to questions from Arab News about the family’s demands, or whether the report would be made public, by the time of publication.

Nasir alleged that police negligence had become evident during the commission’s proceedings and said investigators had continued to pursue suicide as an explanation.

Karachi’s police surgeon identified more than a dozen deficiencies in the initial autopsy. The subsequent examination found that a bullet had entered Ali’s back and exited through his chest, damaging his heart. A final postmortem report concluded that its findings were “inconsistent with suicide as the manner of the death.”

Police reconstituted the investigation team in August. The family has since sought a joint team comprising officers from federal and provincial agencies with no previous involvement in the case.

Nasir also challenged the legal basis for a proposal to establish another medical board to review the findings. He said the family had cooperated with the judicial commission, which had been proposed by provincial lawmaker Faryal Talpur to address its concerns.

Questions over police handling of serious crimes have surfaced in other Karachi cases. In February 2025, three officers were suspended and demoted over their handling of the kidnapping and murder investigation of 23-year-old Mustafa Amir, whose disappearance also drew widespread attention.

The city also faces persistent violent crime and armed theft. The Citizens-Police Liaison Committee, a statutory organization that assists law enforcement and crime victims, recorded 52 homicides and 1,859 mobile-phone snatchings in Karachi in September alone.