On a day that witnessed rapid developments in the death of 32-year-old former model-actress Twisha Sharma, the Bhopal Police on Friday detained her husband Samarth Singh, who is on the run for over a week, and the Madhya Pradesh High Court ordered a second autopsy to be conducted by the Delhi AIIMS team at the request of her family.
The actress was found dead at her home in Bhopal’s Katara Hills area on May 12, with her family claiming that she was harassed and ill-treated over dowry.
Singh, the fugitive lawyer’s husband, withdrew his anticipatory bail application in the Supreme Court earlier in the day and appeared before the Jabalpur district court in the evening to surrender himself. His lawyers said that a Bhopal police team detained him and left for Bhopal. Singh tried to surrender before the Jabalpur District Court, but the court did not allow him to do so.
“The correct procedure in such kind of cases is that if the accused is arrested under police torture, he may surrender himself before the trial court or before the investigating officer. If he surrenders before the investigating officer, he may be formally arrested as per prevailing law,” Supreme Court Justice AK Singh said.
“Since the police have the right to interrogate the accused for 24 hours, within 24 hours, the police must produce the accused before the competent court and seek judicial custody of the accused or police custody,” the judge said, adding: “In the opposite case, if the accused surrenders before the trial court or the remand court when the charge sheet is not filed, the court is bound to send a copy of the extradition request to the SHO concerned who must file the case diaries and file the appropriate application in this regard.”
Meanwhile, the Bar Council of India has suspended Samarth Singh’s law license, barring him from practicing law with immediate effect.
The HC ordered an autopsy for the second time
The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Friday ordered a second autopsy to be conducted at AIIMS Bhopal in the presence of expert doctors from Delhi.
Justice Singh, cited above, passed the order while hearing the petition filed by the woman’s family earlier in the day.
Accused Mrigendra Singh’s lawyer maintained that they had no objection if the autopsy of the deceased was conducted for the second time. “…Just worry that the names of AIIMS doctors in Bhopal, who are very good, will be tarnished,” the lawyer said.
Justice Singh said: “It is also held that, by directing a second post-mortem examination, neither this court nor the petitioner has directly or indirectly attributed any wrong motive or cast any doubt on the earlier post-mortem report or on any person but the death of the deceased occurred within six months of the marriage, therefore, a second post-mortem examination must be conducted to remove all doubts from any quarter.”
During the hearing, the court asked the director of AIIMS in New Delhi to form a team of experts who can arrive at the earliest via a special flight arranged by the state government to conduct the post-mortem examination.
Advocate Anurag Shrivastava, representing the victim’s family, said: “We filed an urgent writ petition at 10:30 am and the court directed AIIMS Bhopal to conduct a second post-mortem examination as soon as possible. Expert doctors will travel from Delhi to conduct the examination. In our second application challenging the interim bail granted to the retired judge (Samarth Singh’s mother), the court has issued a notice and the matter will be heard on Monday.”
Earlier, the Madhya Pradesh government recommended a CBI investigation into the case. The Home Ministry has issued a notification transferring the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation under the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946.
The case, registered at Katara Hills police station, involves charges under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Act, 2023, and the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961.
“The state government has given its consent to investigate the relevant crimes, incitement to such crimes, and/or any conspiracy related to the case,” the order, issued two days after the victim’s family met Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, said.
The victim’s father welcomed the court order and the CBI investigation, saying, “We want a post-mortem video and a clear report so that justice can be done for my daughter. Her husband was a legal advisor to the Madhya Pradesh government, and under these circumstances, how can one expect an impartial investigation? He and his mother are using their influence to suppress the matter.”
