JOIN USJudge blames forensic expert, Puttur SI's negligence
The anomaly in the forensic report with regard to one of the victims of ‘cyanide killer’ Mohan Kumar took the Fast Track Court in Mangalore by surprise on Friday. The body was recovered from a public toilet at Hassan Bus stand.
Jayachamarajendra Government Hospital Retired Forensic Expert Dr T Padmanabha said that he received a dead body of an adult lady aged about 25 years in a highly decomposed state.
The post mortem examination revealed that the lady had died due to respiratory failure on consumption of Organophospharous Poison (OP).
“There was a pungent sweetish smell coupled with kerosene like smell coming from the decomposed body. This happens in case of consumption of salts of cyanide and OP respectively. Hence in the report I have mentioned about OP,” said the forensic expert.
However, when Puttur Division police wrote to the specialist demanding further detailed report on the same case, after six months of the first report, the same doctor gave a report that the victim had died due to administration of salts of cyanide.
Judge Ningannagowda Jantli asked the doctor as to why this difference is seen in the report.
He further questioned if the viscera of the body was stored and if the sexual organs of the dead body were searched for traces of possible sexual intercourse, the doctor replied that it was an unidentified body and the report does not carry specific details. Agreeing that the Viscera of the body was not saved, he said that since the body was in a decomposed state, he could not look for specific details of traces of sexual intercourse.
“The symptoms of a sexual intercourse gets worn off after 48 hours of death,” he said adding that in this case, the body was brought for post mortem three days after the death.
“When police asked the detailed report of the same, I did an indepth study of the case and gave a report specifying that the death had occurred due to consumption of cyanide,” he said adding that re-examination and post mortem is required only if another forensic doctor was giving second opinion on the same case.
“I see sheer negligence on the part of the Puttur Sub Inspector and the Forensic Expert in this case,” the Judge said.
Why the change?
Mohan, defending himself asked Padmanabha as to why after six months, he had changed the report and if he had done the same on request from the police? He basically reiterated the questions that the Prosecutor Cheyabba Beary and the Judge had already raised earlier.
Earlier, Bantwal Community Health Centre Medical Officer Surendranath Nayak said that during 2009, he had conducted various tests on Mohan, which have revealed that Mohan is mentally and physically fit.
As many as eight witnesses including the then Bantwal BEO, Syndicate Bank Manager of Bantwal branch and others gave their statement.