A second autopsy is underway for model Twisha Sharma, with an AIIMS Delhi team investigating her death amid family allegations of dowry harassment and a flawed initial post-mortem.
Key Points
- AIIMS Delhi doctors are conducting a second autopsy on Twisha Sharma after her family raised concerns about the initial post-mortem.
- Twisha Sharma's family alleges dowry harassment and abetment to suicide against her in-laws.
- The family's concerns include alleged blunt force injuries and the lack of detailed dissection during the first autopsy.
- Police have registered an FIR against Twisha's husband and mother-in-law on charges of dowry harassment.
- Twisha's husband, Samarth Singh, has been arrested and is in police remand.
A team of doctors from AIIMS Delhi on Sunday started performing a second autopsy of former-model-turned-actor Twisha Sharma in Bhopal, family sources said.
The family has requested the team to adopt a multidisciplinary forensic, pathological and radiological approach and independently examine concerns they claimed were not adequately addressed during the first post-mortem conducted in Bhopal.
Family Alleges Dowry Harassment
Twisha (33) was found hanging at her matrimonial home in Bhopal's Katara Hills area on May 12, with her family accusing her in-laws of dowry harassment and abetment to suicide. Her in-laws, however, claimed she suffered from drug addiction.
Acting on a May 22 order from the Madhya Pradesh High Court, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi, constituted a four-member team of senior doctors to conduct a second autopsy. The medical team arrived here on Saturday night.
Second Autopsy Underway
The team has started the second autopsy. Twisha's last rites would be performed in the evening, her family members said.
Earlier, a senior AIIMS Bhopal doctor, requesting anonymity, told PTI that the autopsy would be conducted strictly in accordance with the high court's directions. He declined to disclose the timing of the examination.
Concerns Raised By The Family
On Saturday, Twisha's father, Navnidhi Sharma, submitted a detailed representation along with a copy of the high court order to the medical board, raising several concerns regarding the first autopsy.
Among the concerns raised were alleged blunt force injuries on Twisha's left arm and forearm, lack of detailed dissection to determine the depth and age of injuries, and absence of radiological examination of the neck and cervical structures.
The family also sought a correlation between the alleged ligature material and injuries recorded on the neck and requested a toxicological evaluation of preserved viscera samples.
The representation also urged to examine whether findings relating to the face, eyes and lungs were consistent with hanging, strangulation, suffocation or any other possible cause of death.
Police Investigation
The police have registered an FIR against Twisha's husband Samarth Singh, who is a lawyer, and her mother-in-law and former district judge Giribala Singh on charges of harassment for dowry.
Samarth Singh was arrested in Jabalpur on Friday after remaining absconding for 10 days. A Bhopal court on Saturday sent him to a seven-day police remand.
