OBSERVING that it was “pained” by the narrative that the judiciary was shielding the accused, the Supreme Court on Monday said it would ensure a fair, independent and impartial CBI probe into the death of Twisha Sharma. Sharma, 33, was found hanging at her matrimonial home in Bhopal’s Katara Hills area on May 12, with her family accusing her in-laws of dowry harassment and abetment to suicide. Her in-laws, however, claimed she suffered from drug addiction. The police have registered an FIR against her husband, Samarth Singh, a lawyer, and her mother-in-law, former district judge Giribala Singh. A bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi asked the media to exercise restraint while reporting developments in the case. “We are slightly in pain because of some of the actions. We will request our media friends to not go for the statements of the victim’s family or the other family. Let the things move as per law and procedure.” “We request the media not to record statements of the victim’s family and reduce their pain to sound bites,” the bench said, adding that a narrative should be avoided.

 

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the apex court that the CBI would take over the probe and assured that the administrative steps would be taken today itself. The apex court took suo motu cognisance of the Twisha Sharma case after a media report raised questions of institutional bias in the probe, including allegations that a fair investigation was being denied because the accused is a lawyer and his mother is a former district judge. Matter of great satisfaction for us, says Twisha family’s advocate as SC hears case AS THE Supreme Court heard the case related to the death of former actor-model Twisha Sharma, her family’s lawyer Anurag Srivastava on Monday said the apex court’s intervention has brought great satisfaction to the family, which had earlier struggled to get its concerns heard. Speaking to IANS, Advocate Srivastava said: “It was a very sensitive matter. There was a time when no one was listening to Twisha’s family, and they were running from place to place. This is a matter of great satisfaction for us. Whatever developments took place in the last eight to ten days, the Supreme Court has taken cognisance of them.”