Sultan Zafar’s body exhumed 15 months after death

The body of 23-year-old medical student Sultan Zafar was exhumed in Karachi on Wednesday. The exhumation took place nearly 15 months after his death.

His family had requested the exhumation. They have raised questions about the circumstances of his death. The family also suspects that he may have been murdered.

A nine-member medical board carried out the exhumation at Kohi Goth Graveyard. The board included seven doctors and two mortuary attendants.

The team conducted a fresh post-mortem examination. It also collected samples from the body. The samples have been sent for chemical analysis.

The final post-mortem report will be prepared after the laboratory results are received. The findings could help investigators determine the nature of the injuries and clarify the circumstances surrounding his death.

A magistrate ordered the exhumation after receiving an application from Sultan’s family.

Professor of Radiology Dr Saba Sohail headed the medical board. The board also included doctors from forensic medicine, neurosurgery and medico-legal departments.

Sultan had gone to Dau Darya with his friends on July 23, 2025. He later suffered serious injuries in an incident that was initially described as an accident.

He was taken to hospital for treatment. He remained under medical care for about a week. He later died from his injuries.

After his death, Sultan’s mother, Dr Mehr Afroz, decided to donate his organs. Both of his kidneys were later transplanted into two patients receiving dialysis at the Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT).

The family later raised concerns about the injuries Sultan had suffered. They said CT scans and X-rays showed fractures in different parts of his body.

The family specifically pointed to a fracture of the nasal bone. They said they approached police after seeing the injuries but did not receive the cooperation they expected.

Sultan’s maternal aunt, Mehr Feroz, spoke to the media after Wednesday’s exhumation. She said the family suspected that Sultan had been murdered.

According to the family, Sultan was accompanied by three girls and four boys when the incident occurred. They reportedly travelled in two vehicles from Dau Darya towards an area near an under-construction building.

The family said Sultan’s friends had given them an account of the incident. They allegedly told the family that Sultan got out of a moving vehicle.

The vehicle was reportedly travelling at around 20 kilometres per hour. Sultan allegedly fell and suffered serious injuries.

However, Mehr Feroz said the family was not satisfied with this explanation. She said they had found no evidence at the reported location to support the accident theory.

The family wants the new forensic examination to establish what happened before Sultan sustained his injuries. They are also seeking answers about how he died.

Police eventually registered a case at Sahil police station under Section 320 of the Pakistan Penal Code. The case was registered nearly six months after Sultan’s death on the complaint of his mother.

The exhumation is now expected to provide investigators with additional forensic evidence. The chemical analysis and final post-mortem report will be important in determining the next course of the investigation.

The family hopes the forensic findings will help establish whether Sultan’s death was an accident or involved criminal activity.