Police have come under scrutiny over their handling of the death of 32-year-old former model actor Twisha Sharma, with the family alleging lapses in the investigation and the Madhya Pradesh government handing over the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
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.
Bhopal police on Friday arrested her husband Samarth Singh, who has been on the run for more than a week, and the Bar Council of India suspended his law licence, barring him from practicing law with immediate effect. Meanwhile, the Madhya Pradesh High Court ordered a second autopsy to be conducted by the AIIMS Delhi team, at the request of her family.
The father of the deceased woman claimed that the police did not cooperate with them. He added that now that the state government has made its stand clear by handing over the case to the CBI, the police, who are yet to reveal anything, are supporting their point before the court.
The father said: “The police registered the case after only 48 hours. We went to Katara Hills Police Station the next day to file a complaint about murder and harassment over dowry. Why did it take two more days to send the nylon belt used in the crime for forensic examination? The report came five days after her death, and yet the police shamelessly claimed it was a suicide.”
He also questioned why signs of injury observed after death were considered “general” without proper investigation. “The CCTV camera seized from the house of the retired judge shows the date as May 10, but the crime took place on May 12. Why has the police not explained the date difference yet? In the autopsy, my daughter’s height was shown to be different. Likewise, different ages were mentioned in the FIR,” he said, adding that the entire investigation was conducted carelessly to weaken the case.
The family also criticized the police for failing to detain the husband for 10 days before he surrendered before a Jabalpur court on Friday. The father said: “This shows that the police were not willing to arrest him.”
Meanwhile, the retired judge – the deceased’s mother-in-law – alleged that the police were acting under pressure from the victim’s family and were not conducting a fair investigation. “I have given everything to the police but they are making false accusations that I do not support them. They have no evidence to suggest dowry harassment as we reported $7.5 lakh to the daughter-in-law’s account, but they are just thinking of transferring it $She said: 2 lakh.
The retired judge recorded her statement with the police on Friday.
Bhopal Deputy Commissioner of Police Vikas Sehwal said, “All the questions raised by the victim’s family members are part of the investigation. She was issued notices on May 13 and 14, summoning her to join the investigation, but she did not appear. Even after granting anticipatory bail, a notice was sent via WhatsApp on May 20; however, despite going through the message, she did not respond. On May 21, when a police assistant inspector from Katara Hills police station arrived at her residence, Her domestic help, Pankaj Jaria, informed him that she was not at home and also refused to accept the notice.
We have included all the points of investigation in the application submitted to the Supreme Court seeking cancellation of the anticipatory bail granted to the retired judge.
The police said in their application that the court ignored important evidence, including WhatsApp conversations between the victim and her parents, which included explicit allegations of harassment. They also cited Section 118 of the Indian Evidence Act, which presumes liability if a woman dies under unnatural circumstances within seven years of marriage, as the victim was married for five months.
Police also accused the retired judge of tampering with evidence. “Police confiscated CCTV footage, but the retired judge selectively leaked edited CCTV footage from her home on social media, held a press conference to influence public opinion, and failed to cooperate with investigation notices,” the police said.
The autopsy report attributed her death to the suspension of the ligature. “I have observed multiple ante-mortem injuries caused by blunt force. Combined with allegations of dowry harassment and domestic cruelty, the case is very serious,” the police said in its application.
Citing family statements that the harassment began soon after the marriage, with demands for dowry and defamation of the victim’s character, police said she was pressured to undergo an abortion in early May after becoming pregnant in April.
Police said the victim’s last phone call was considered crucial evidence. “At 9:41 pm on May 12, she called her mother, as family members heard her husband screaming in the background before she suddenly hung up. The phone was hung up immediately after that. At 10:35 pm, the retired judge finally informed the family about the woman’s death. But the police came to know about it in the middle of the night, i.e. through the AIIMS bench. Without questioning the accused, investigations cannot be completed,” Bhopal Police Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Singh said.
He added: “The retired judge was issued notices at least four times, but she failed to cooperate. The investigation is now including her call records as part of the investigation, as she contacted 46 people in a short period after the crime.”
