A Special CBI court of Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC), Anudita Gupta, in Bhopal, extended the judicial custody of former Judge Giribala Singh and her son Samarth Singh till 28th July on Tuesday (14th July) in connection with a case relating to the death of her daughter-in-law, Twisha Sharma. This comes after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said that the ex-judge and her son, who are accused in the case, have not been cooperating in the investigation. The agency said that the accused did not provide their voice samples. Both accused appeared before the court via video conference.
The CBI told the court that during the previous hearing, the accused did not express any objection to providing voice samples during the previous hearing but when its team visited them in the jail on 6th July to collect voice samples, they did not cooperate. The agency said that the non-cooperation by the two accused is hampering the investigation in the case.
Twisha’s family’s lawyer, Ankur Pandey, told the media that Giribala Singh provided a sample once, but when the CBI team arrived to collect the sample again, she refused, and Samarth also refused to give the sample. Giribala and Samarth Singh’s lawyer, Enosh George Carlo, however, refuted the CBI’s allegations, stating that his clients never refused to provide voice samples.
The court noted that the investigation is not yet complete in the case, and the forensic reports and witnesses’ statements are also pending before passing the order of extension of the custody.
Background of the case
Twisha Sharma, a former Miss Pune winner and actor-model from Noida, married Advocate Samarth Singh on 25th December last year. However, months later, on 12th May, she was found dead at her matrimonial house in Katara Hills area of Bhopal. The couple had met through a dating app around five months before their marriage.
Twisha’s family has accused her husband and in-laws of continuous mental harassment, domestic violence and financial pressure after marriage. On 23rd May, the Supreme Court registered a suo motu case in connection with the death of 33-year-old Twisha Sharma, a resident of Noida, after concerns were raised over the investigation and the handling of evidence in the case.
