When the family rejects the body, the Sindh government will bury actress Humaira Asghar.
After her death, which is now shrouded in mystery and public indignation, the body of actress and model Humaira Asghar Ali has been left unclaimed in a cold storage facility in Karachi for the past two days.
The Sindh Culture and Tourism Department has stepped up and declared that it will handle her burial after her family refused to accept her remains.
Syed Zulfiqar Ali Shah, the provincial minister for culture, affirmed that the department will regard itself as Humaira’s heir and carry out her funeral if the deceased’s parents or close blood relatives still refuse to accept the body. The DIG South has already received a formal letter from the Sindh culture secretary asking for the body to be turned over so that funeral arrangements can be made.
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In his letter to the DIG South, the secretary asked for the body of Humaira Asghar to be turned over, claiming that she was not an abandoned person. As stated in the letter, “The case of Humaira Asghar is deeply saddening and heartbreaking,” The burial and cemetery arrangements, as well as every other step of the process, will be entirely handled by the culture department.
“Our first effort remains to persuade the parents to accept and receive the body,” said the secretary.
According to Zulfiqar Ali Shah, “our first effort is that the parents agree and receive the body,” “But if not, we will fulfill our social and moral obligation to see that she is buried with honor.”
A tragic reminder of Humaira’s lonely life, her body was reportedly found inside a room in her Karachi home six months after she passed away. It has been waiting to be identified and released for the past two days in Chhipa Welfare’s secret cold storage.
Police authorities maintained that only blood relatives are legally eligible to claim the body, despite the fact that a brother-in-law stepped forward to do so. The police have described the situation as “worrying,” and residents have voiced their grief and rage at what they see as society’s disregard for those who live alone.
“She was a single woman. Death arrived alone. And as of right now, nobody has shown up to meet her,” remarked a social worker working on the case.
Wider discussions about social alienation and urban loneliness have been spurred by the incident. Psychologists say this case reflects a growing trend of isolation in large cities, where individuals living alone often go unnoticed until tragedy strikes.
See Also: Doctor Says Humaira Asghar’s Body Was Too Decomposed to Determine Cause of Death
As an alternative, Shahzeb Sohail, a resident of Karachi, has petitioned the City Court to register a murder case. According to the petitioner, Humaira Asghar was murdered rather than dying naturally. He goes on to say that the incident’s video evidence points to foul play and demands a full investigation, even asking police to look into her family.
SSP South and the SHO of Gizri Police Station are listed as respondents in the petition. Rescue officials warn that if no family member steps forward in the coming days, the body will be buried in the Amanta graveyard in Moach Goth, reserved for unclaimed remains.
