Murtaza Bhutto

TRIBUNAL WARNS DOCTOR OF PERJURY CASE
KARACHI, Jan 2, 1997: Dr. S. M. A. Shah, a member of the medical board
which had examined the injuries to ASP Shahid Hayat, informed the tribunal
of inquiry on Thursday that the authorities wanted to "make meaningful
changes" in the report but he refused to sign a second report. "I thwarted the
move by refusing to sign a second report after a couple of days," Dr. Shah, 50,
owner of the AO Clinic, Nazimabad, told the tribunal.
He was one of the members of the 10-member medical board, constituted by
the Sindh chief secretary, and the board had examined the wounded the ASP.
Shahid Hayat had received a bullet wound in his left thigh. The board in its
finding had stated that it was a case of firearm injury and that it was "not a
self-inflicted" one. The distance of firing on his left thigh was between 2 and 3
feet. He said he was the author of the report and all the nine other members
unanimously agreed and signed the report. But a few days later, he was
contacted by the chairman of the board, Dr. A. Karim Siddiqui, to sign
another report which was a typed one "with meaningful changes in it."
The witness said he refused to sign although all the other members had done
so, including the chairman, because its sanctity was destroyed, and was being
done at the behest of those who had constituted the board. An attempt was
made to change the report, he informed the tribunal.
Q: Who had brought the typed report for your signatures?
A: Dr. Karim Siddiqui, professor and head of the department of surgery,
DMC and Dr. Tariq Mirza, vice principal of DMC and associate professor of
forensic medicine, had come to my residence to get the signatures.
Q: What did they tell you and why they wanted your signatures on a new
report?
A: They said the report which I had written in my handwriting was typed
and they sought my signatures saying that minor alterations have been made.
It had already been signed by eight doctors and Dr. Ishaque Shaikh had not
signed it because he was not available at his place. They said he will sign it
later.
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