Twisha Sharma case: Final notice served to ex-judge Giribala Singh for recording statement

Bhopal: The Madhya Pradesh police have issued the third and final notice for recording of statement to ex-judge Giribala Singh, who has been booked in connection with the death of her daughter-in-law Twisha Sharma allegedly due to dowry harassment, an official said.

The Madhya Pradesh government has also initiated a probe to decide whether Singh, who has got anticipatory bail in the case, can continue as chairperson of the consumer court, an official circular said.

“The third and last notice has been issued to her (for recording of statement). If she does not cooperate, we will move the sessions court seeking cancellation of her bail,” Bhopal Commissioner of Police Sanjay Kumar told PTI over the phone on Thursday.

Police sources said the notice asking her to record her statement in the case was served through post and WhatsApp.

They said that on the previous two occasions that notices were served, she was not found at her residence.

Women and children are not called to the court for statement recording, which is done at home, they said.

Meanwhile, Twisha Sharma’s family lawyer Ankur Pandey told PTI that a petition had been filed before the principal bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court in Jabalpur challenging the anticipatory bail granted to Giribala Singh.

“We will contest the bail on the ground that the subordinate court ignored material evidence and provisions related to presumption in dowry death cases under Section 118 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023,” Pandey said.

The provision states that if a woman dies under unnatural circumstances within seven years of marriage and there is evidence of dowry-related cruelty soon before her death, the court shall presume the accused caused the dowry death unless proved otherwise.

In a related development, police teams have fanned out across Madhya Pradesh and outside the state to trace Twisha’s husband Samarth Singh, who remains absconding. Police have announced a reward of Rs 30,000 for information leading to his arrest.

Katara police station house officer Sunil Dubey, who is out of Bhopal heading a team, declined to speak on whether they had got leads on Samarth Singh’s whereabouts.

Twisha Sharma, 33, was found hanging at her matrimonial home in Bhopal’s Katara Hills area on May 12. Her family accused her in-laws of dowry harassment and abetment to suicide, while the Singh family claimed she was addicted to drugs.

Police have registered an FIR under Sections 80(2), 85 and 3(5) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita along with provisions of the Dowry Prohibition Act against Samarth Singh and Giribala Singh.