The arrest of retired district judge Giribala Singh by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday marked the culmination of a relentless 15-day struggle by the family of Twisha Sharma, which moved from police offices to courtrooms and public protests seeking justice for their daughter.
Twisha's death triggered allegations of dowry harassment, evidence tampering and the possible misuse of institutional influence.
The sequence of events began on the night of May 12, when 33-year-old Twisha Sharma was found dead at her matrimonial home in Bhopal’s Katara Hills area, barely six months after her marriage to Samarth Singh, son of retired district judge Giribala Singh.
Her death immediately raised suspicion under dowry death provisions because it occurred within seven years of marriage.
On May 13, Bhopal Police accessed the CCTV DVR installed at the residence through a technician.
According to submissions later made before a court by Giribala Singh, the eight-camera surveillance system had a “technical defect” that displayed the timing nearly two days and two hours behind the actual time.
Around the same period, Twisha’s family began alleging that selective footage was being circulated to shape a narrative around the incident.
The first postmortem conducted at AIIMS Bhopal stated that the cause of death was “asphyxia due to ante-mortem hanging by ligature”.
However, controversy erupted after it emerged that the nylon gym rope allegedly used in the incident was not produced before doctors during the autopsy and was submitted later.
Twisha’s family sought a second postmortem examination, but the plea was initially rejected by a Bhopal court.
Soon after, Katara Hills Police registered an FIR under provisions related to domestic violence, matrimonial cruelty and dowry death under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Following the FIR, Samarth Singh went absconding. Police initially announced a reward of Rs 10,000 for information leading to his whereabouts, which was later increased to Rs 30,000.
As the investigation progressed, Twisha’s family intensified its campaign for justice.
Family members, friends and former colleagues staged protests at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, alleging that the accused family was attempting to influence the probe because of its legal background.
Simultaneously, the family approached the Madhya Pradesh High Court seeking directions for preservation of call detail records and CCTV footage from AIIMS Bhopal.
On May 15, Giribala Singh secured anticipatory bail from a Bhopal sessions court.
Four days later, on May 19, another sessions court rejected Samarth Singh’s anticipatory bail plea, observing that the woman’s unnatural death had occurred within six months of marriage.
Amid mounting public pressure and allegations of procedural lapses by local police, the Madhya Pradesh government transferred the investigation to the CBI.
Police Commissioner Sanjay Kumar also ordered a departmental inquiry into alleged irregularities in the initial handling of evidence.
On May 22, Samarth Singh was arrested from the Jabalpur district court premises and brought to Bhopal the following day.
During subsequent hearings, the state government sought cancellation of Giribala Singh’s anticipatory bail, alleging obstruction of the investigation and compromise of the crime scene.
The Madhya Pradesh High Court later ordered a second autopsy by a forensic team from AIIMS Delhi at AIIMS Bhopal under full videography to remove “all doubts from any quarter”.
On May 25, the CBI formally took over the case by registering a separate FIR.
A day before her arrest, on May 27, the High Court rejected Giribala Singh’s interim bail plea.
On Thursday morning, a CBI team reached Giribala Singh’s residence in Katara Hills amid heavy security deployment.
After carrying out a detailed inspection and 3D scanning of the premises, the agency arrested her in connection with the case.
Following the arrest, Twisha’s father described the development as the beginning of justice for his daughter and expressed confidence that the CBI investigation would bring out the complete truth behind her death.
Picture Courtesy: Instagram/ Justice for Twisha Sharma
