Bhopal, May 22 (IANS) Family members of alleged dowry death victim Twisha Sharma on Friday thanked the Madhya Pradesh government and the High Court for announcing a CBI inquiry into the case and ordering a second post-mortem to be conducted by AIIMS Delhi, respectively.

The High Court passed the order while hearing a petition filed by Twisha Sharma’s family, which had challenged a lower court’s refusal to allow a fresh post-mortem examination. The family argued that several inconsistencies and procedural lapses in the first autopsy raised doubts about the fairness of the investigation.

Speaking to IANS, Twisha’s cousin Ashish Sharma expressed his gratitude to the judiciary.

“Now the action that the administration has to take should be carried out immediately, without any delay. After that, we will proceed with the last rites.”

“For the past ten days, we have been continuously struggling and appealing for this. We hope that by today or tomorrow, the entire process and action will be completed properly,” he added.

Thanking the MP government for ordering a CBI probe, Twisha’s uncle, Lokesh Sharma, expressed optimism that the authorities have understood the seriousness of the case.

“Without a CBI investigation, justice for the victim would not have been possible. Once again, I thank the government, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav,” he told IANS.

He mentioned that the common man’s faith in the government and the judiciary cannot be strengthened until such “influential accused” are convicted and sent behind the bars.

“A message needs to be sent to those influential people who think that they can escape after committing a crime, that the law is equal for all,” he underlined.

Lokesh Sharma further said that though it is written in the Constitution that the law is equal for all, its effective implementation needs to be witnessed.

Twisha’s uncle alleged that the house where the “crime” was committed is still under the possession of her in-laws.

“They (the in-laws) are living their lives normally, as if nothing has happened. The house should have been sealed. They might have destroyed all evidence by now. Due to all this, a CBI probe was requested,” he said.

He alleged that doctors at AIIMS Bhopal, where Twisha’s first post-mortem was conducted, worked under the influence of her in-laws.

“The doctors appeared to save the accused family as much as they could,” Lokesh Sharma alleged.

He further accused Twisha’s mother-in-law, Giribala Singh, of using the loopholes of the legal system, given her status as a retired judge.

Referring to Singh’s call detail records, he said: “She had called up influential people who, in turn, have tried protecting her.”

Terming the battle for justice as a “long drawn one”, Twisha’s cousin Meenakshi Sharma said: “These are powerful people who, within just 2–3 hours of the incident, made around 40 calls. This shows how far their influence can reach.”

She urged Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government to intervene in this matter. “The UP government should take steps since we are from Uttar Pradesh, our home is there,” she said.

Further, Meenakshi Sharma thanked citizens across the country for standing up for the victim.

Mentioning one of the apparent discrepancies in the first post-mortem, another cousin, Swati Sharma, said: “How can the doctors mention a wrong measurement of Twisha’s height in the post-mortem report?”

Meanwhile, the Jabalpur police have taken Twisha’s husband, Samarth Singh, into custody after he arrived at a Jabalpur court to surrender.

He had been absconding for the last 10 days after Twisha was declared dead at AIIMS Bhopal late on the night of May 12.

–IANS

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