Madhya Pradesh has asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to take over the investigation into the death of a woman, identified as Twisha Sharma, due to harassment by her in-laws.
The woman in her 30s, originally from Noida in Uttar Pradesh, was found dead on May 12 at her husband’s house in Bagh-Mughalia area of Bhopal. But her family claimed foul play, pointing to signs of injury on her body. They claimed that she said she was assaulted by her husband.
Since her death, several developments such as her husband’s disappearance, CCTV footage allegedly from moments before her death and alleged WhatsApp chats where she expressed her frustration over the situation in her matrimonial home have raised questions about the events that led to the alleged suicide.
Last Friday, the police registered a first information report (FIR) against the deceased’s husband – Samarth Singh and mother-in-law – Gribala Singh – under Section 80 (2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) (dowry death), based on the family’s complaint, Police Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Singh said, adding that the investigation is ongoing.
“Character assassination” by her mother-in-law
Giripala Singh attracted media attention for her statements, which many said amounted to character assassination.
Singh, who has given several media interviews since the death, claimed in her statements that she had noticed within five months of marriage that her daughter-in-law “held liberal views” and that she “never watered the plants.”
Her mother-in-law also defended her son, saying that men often find it difficult to express their grief through tears, and that he had been struggling with his wife’s behavioral problems from the beginning. She claimed there were no major fights, but the medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) caused emotional distress. She confirmed that her son would eventually appear and assume his legal defense, stressing that the case brought against them deserves to be rejected.
Expanding her claims regarding the deceased woman’s mental health, the retired judge described the death as a terrible loss, but claimed that the woman was undergoing psychiatric treatment and taking medication for schizophrenia, and was displaying physical symptoms such as hand tremors.
Her mother-in-law said on Monday: “It is a huge loss for us because, whatever the circumstances, she was part of our family… She also went for psychological counseling, and was prescribed medications that are given to a patient with schizophrenia… She would have remained stable for a day or so, but again, there was a slight change in her condition. We noticed some physical symptoms, a slight tremor in her hands, which is typical of withdrawal symptoms… She ruined everything…” her mother-in-law said on Monday.
She further claimed that the woman suffered from drug withdrawal after moving to Bhopal, alleging that she admitted to using large amounts of marijuana to terminate her pregnancy.
“After coming here, she ran out of drugs… She admitted to consuming large amounts of marijuana when she wanted to reverse her pregnancy… A counseling session was held during that period… Although I can’t make any very technical statement about it because she was on schizophrenia medications…”
