Zara cheerful and disciplined, not distressed - witness

KOTA KINABALU (Oct 21): A Coroner’s Court here on Tuesday heard that the late Zara Qairina Mahathir was a cheerful and respectful student who showed no signs of sadness or depression before her death.

Lawyer for Zara’s mother, Rizwandean Bukhari M. Borhan, said the 17th child witness — who was also Zara’s roommate — testified that Zara was always respectful toward senior students and aspired to become a Badar (surau prefect).

“Students who want to become badar must be disciplined and able to memorise chapters from the Quran. The witness said Zara admired a senior student who was a Badar,” said Rizwandean at a press conference on Tuesday.

He said the witness described Zara as a casual friend and had never seen her sad, angry, or in conflict with anyone at school.

“The witness never saw Zara scream, cry, or being scolded or disturbed by anyone — except on the night of July 15,” he added.

Regarding the incident on that night, the witness, who was the 26th deponent, told the court that around 9 pm, after a revision class, she and several other students returned to the dormitory.

“She went down to wash clothes in the toilet before returning to the room around 10 pm. Before going to sleep, she saw Zara sitting on the floor in front of her locker, but did not notice what she was doing,” Rizwandean said.

Meanwhile, lawyer Datuk Ram Singh, representing a child involved in the bullying case, shared testimony from the 17th witness, a Form One student.

The witness said she saw a scar resembling a ‘barcode’ on Zara’s arm while in the dormitory bathroom, which Zara showed her.

“She (the witness) said she didn’t know why. She didn’t want to ask why, but she knew what a barcode was. When asked if there were many lines, she replied, ‘Yes, quite a few lines,’” Ram told reporters.

The witness also confirmed reading Zara’s diary with her permission, noting that most entries mentioned other witnesses set to testify later.

Zara Qairina, 13, was pronounced dead at Queen Elizabeth Hospital here on July 17 after being found unconscious in a drain near her school dormitory at 4 am on July 16.

The inquest will resume on Wednesday.