Twisha Sharma Death Case: AIIMS Finds Skin Tissue On Gymnastics Belt, Submits Sealed Second Post-Mortem Report To CBI

The five-member medical board handed over its 11-page forensic report to the CBI in a sealed cover on July 10, in compliance with the High Court's directions. While the report confirms a crucial forensic correlation between the gymnastics belt and the neck injuries, the board's final opinion has not been made public, as it remains confidential under judicial directions.

The forensic findings resolve one of the central issues in the investigation: whether the gymnastics belt, fitted with a metal ring and allegedly used as a noose, was the actual ligature responsible for the injuries sustained by Twisha Sharma.

The issue had remained unresolved during the first post-mortem because the alleged ligature material was not produced before the initial medical board. Citing deficiencies in the initial investigation and autopsy, the Madhya Pradesh High Court had ordered a second post-mortem by an AIIMS Delhi medical board and transferred the investigation to the CBI.

Speaking after the report was submitted, Dr. Sudhir Gupta, Head of the Department of Forensic Medicine at AIIMS Delhi, said the board had conducted an exhaustive scientific evaluation before arriving at its conclusions.

"The medical board deliberated very minutely on the case from all possible angles, took into consideration all available national and international journals for almost one month before giving a detailed opinion with scientific justification. It is a crystal-clear opinion for the CBI and for the judiciary in the interest of truth and justice," he said.

Dr. Gupta declined to disclose the board's conclusions, stating that the report had been submitted to the CBI in a sealed cover in accordance with the High Court's directions.

The forwarding communication accompanying the report states that the sealed forensic opinion was handed over to the CBI investigating officer, while the videography of the second post-mortem also remains with the agency.

Background of the Case

Twisha Sharma, a former model and actor and the daughter-in-law of retired Principal District and Sessions Judge Giribala Singh, was found hanging at her matrimonial home in Bhopal on May 12, just months after her marriage to lawyer Samarth Singh in December 2025.

An FIR was subsequently registered against her husband Samarth Singh and mother-in-law Giribala Singh under Sections 80(2), 85 and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, along with Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961.

Her family alleged serious lapses in the initial police investigation and post-mortem examination, claiming she had been subjected to mental cruelty, domestic violence and harassment over dowry demands by her in-laws. They approached the Madhya Pradesh High Court seeking an independent investigation and a fresh medical examination.

The AIIMS board conducted the second post-mortem on May 24 and also inspected the scene of the incident before preparing its report.

Although the report confirms the presence of skin tissue on the alleged ligature material and its correspondence with the injury pattern, the CBI has not yet reached a final conclusion on whether Twisha Sharma's death was a case of suicide or whether any criminal liability is made out. The agency is currently examining and analysing the AIIMS forensic findings as part of its ongoing investigation.

Proceedings Before the Madhya Pradesh High Court

It is to be noted that in May the MP High Court had quashed the anticipatory bail granted to retired district judge Giribala Singh in the Twisha Sharma dowry death case, setting aside a controversial order passed by a Bhopal Sessions Court merely hours after the FIR was registered against her. The Court observed that while the postmortem report recorded the cause of death as “antemortem hanging by ligature,” six additional injuries were also found on the body. These included four injuries on the left arm, one on the ring finger and one injury on the head.