The medical board constituted for the exhumation of Mir Raza Ali, who died under mysterious circumstances in Karachi’s Gulistan-e-Johar area, has been changed again, with the earlier eight-member panel restored through a fresh notification.

Under the new order, Dr Samia Syed has once again been appointed as the board’s convenor.

The restored panel includes Dow University Professor Dr Naseem Ahmed as pathologist, Dr Farah Wasim as forensic expert and CPLC officer Amir Hassan Khan as forensic identification expert. Dr Kamran, Dr Sri Chand and Dr Daniyal Mirza have also been retained as members.

The exhumation of Mir Raza’s body is scheduled for 11am on Saturday to establish the cause of his death and determine the facts surrounding the case. Relevant authorities and departments have been directed to make necessary arrangements.

The development came after the exhumation was earlier postponed when Mir Raza’s family objected to a reconstituted medical board and refused to accept it and demanded to restore the originally constituted medical board.

According to sources, a local court had deferred the exhumation while the investigating officer recorded statements from members of the newly formed board. The authorities were expected to decide the next course of action after completing the process.

Mir Raza’s lawyer, Jibran Nasir, had said the family would not accept the new board under any circumstances. He criticised the repeated changes in notifications and questioned the need to replace the original panel.

He said Mir Raza’s parents had also recorded their statements with the investigating officer and called for Karachi-based doctors and officials to be included in the board.

Mir Raza’s father also raised questions over the investigation and the composition of the medical board, asking why doctors from outside Karachi were being brought in when qualified specialists were available in the city.

Police said statements of members of the newly constituted board were being recorded. Sources said members of the original board had also reached the cemetery but were unaware of the latest notification.

Two members of the newly constituted panel could not reach the cemetery, which prevented the exhumation from being carried out as planned.

Earlier, Jibran Nasir had issued an urgent legal notice to the Karachi police surgeon and health secretary over the change in the medical board.

The notice argued that the exhumation and post-mortem should be conducted by the original eight-member board formed in accordance with court directions. It said the panel included forensic and pathology specialists and had the confidence of Mir Raza’s family.

According to the lawyer, the Director General Health Hyderabad constituted a new board on the night of August 6, replacing all members of the earlier panel.

Nasir maintained that the change was contrary to the court’s directions and amounted to interference in the authority of the Karachi police surgeon.

The family had warned that it would not permit the exhumation or post-mortem if conducted by the newly constituted board.

The DG Health Hyderabad has so far not publicly explained the reasons for changing the medical board.