Twisha Sharma death case: MP High Court allows second postmortem, AIIMS Delhi doctors to join probe
Twisha Sharma death case: The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Friday allowed a second postmortem of Noida resident Twisha Sharma, who was found dead at her in-laws’ house in Bhopal earlier this month. The order came after Twisha’s father, Navnidhi Sharma, moved the court seeking another autopsy and raised questions over the first postmortem report.
According to the family’s lawyer Ankur Pandey, the High Court directed the Madhya Pradesh government to arrange for a team of doctors from AIIMS Delhi to travel to Bhopal for the fresh postmortem examination.
Twisha Sharma, a 33-year-old model-turned-actor, was found hanging at her marital home in Bhopal’s Katara Hills area on May 12. Her family accused her husband and in-laws of harassing her for dowry and alleged that she was driven to death. On the other hand, her in-laws claimed that she was struggling with drug addiction.
The first postmortem was conducted at AIIMS Bhopal. However, Twisha’s family demanded a second autopsy, claiming there were several irregularities and unanswered questions in the initial report.
Earlier this week, a Bhopal lower court had rejected the plea for a second postmortem. Judicial Magistrate First Class Anudita Gupta had observed that minor procedural lapses were not enough to order another autopsy. The court also noted that Twisha’s body was being preserved at AIIMS Bhopal at minus 4 degrees Celsius, while longer preservation required a minus 80-degree facility, which was not available in the city.
Following Twisha Sharma’s death, the police registered an FIR under Sections 80(2), 85 and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita along with relevant provisions of the Dowry Prohibition Act. Her husband Samarth Singh and mother-in-law Giribala Singh, a former judge, were named in the case.
The police have also announced a cash reward of Rs 30,000 for information leading to the arrest of Samarth Singh. Authorities have additionally approached the court seeking cancellation of his passport.
- With inputs from agencies
