- In the afternoon of 12/8/2021 SP Shobit Saxena makes an appeal not to circulate a viral photograph of a dead body found on Calangute beach.
- In the evening, briefs media saying that it clear-cut case of suicide, no injuries present on the body and sexual violence is ruled out by doctors.
- After a week, he tells the media section that viscera and materials have been forwarded to State Forensic Laboratory. The next course of action will be decided upon receipt of reports.
- After two days, DySP asks Forensic HoD to give a protocol for preserving viscera; in return, HoD writes back to him, putting the onus of police in such preservation. Next, Forensic HoD Dr Andre Fernandes confirms with the media that “autopsy was conducted under his supervision and he has not preserved anything as it was clear cut case of drowning, besides police had not requested to do so”.
- After the uproar on not preserving viscera, the demand for a second opinion by a panel of senior doctors started to come.
- In this response, SP told few media persons that there is no need for a second opinion as it is a clear case of downing.
- On 2/9/2021, the father of Siddhi Naik lodged a formal complaint that it was a case of Homicidal Drowning.
- DGP held a meeting with SP, DySp and PI and was told to get an expert opinion. Same, PI Nolasco Raposo wrote to Dean to form Expert Committee and give an opinion.
- Dean formed a panel of three and told them to give a report in 10 days. They submitted the report to Dean on Thursday. The next three days were Ganesh holiday with the opinion that “IO to investigate on the manner of death”. So SP claim that doctor had said it is clear-cut of drowning turns flat.
- Expert Committee submits report to Dean saying the cause of SIDDHI NAIK death is due to drowning, but police must investigate the “MANNER OF DEATH”
Goemkarponn desk
PANAJI: The three-member Committee, which was entrusted with reviewing the death of Siddhi Naik, has put the onus of “manner of death” on police investigations.
The Committee led by Dr Wieman Pinto submitted the report to Dr Shivanand Bendekar, Goa MEdical Dean.
The report says that the cause of death is drowning with three superficial bruises on the body.
“The investigating officer should investigate the manner of death (i.e. whether it is suicidal, accidental or murder),” the report says.
Though Goemkarponn has the entire report content, it would not be disclosed as police investigations are still in progress.
What the report means?
The three-member committee report means the case is wide open. Through investigation done so far, police have not reached any logical conclusion to say it is suicide.
This also means that the police had misread the earlier autopsy report.
The doctors would tell you about the cause of death and not how the death occurred.
So the question now arises how teh police concluded the death was due to drowning was a suicide.
(As per the father’s statement before LPSI, he had stated that she was diagnosed as Covid 19 positive on April 21 and was in depression since then and had informed her family she would die one day.
In his statement, he did not state that she had been informed she would commit suicide one day).
On the other hand, the father has lodged a formal complaint explaining circumstances pointing towards “homicidal drowning” based on postmortem findings and viral photos.
Mystery of empty column for receipt of body…
There is another mystery in the case as to why the column for receipt of the body was left blank.
On autopsy report column for the time of receipt of the dead body in the mortuary has been left blank. The time of Death as per police record is mentioned as prior to 6.40 am of 12/8/2021, receipt of panchanama as “12/8/2021 at 1.00 pm”.
According to relatives of Siddhi Naik, they had seen a dead body in a private hearse van on 12/8/2021 morning, and from there dead body was taken into Morgue and panchanama was done.
As per the Calangute Police station diary, 108 ambulance staff were called at the site at 6.50 am, and they declared that the unknown lady on the beach was not alive.
Then the dead body was immediately shifted to GMC Morgue. A police present at the police station on that day told Goemkarpon that a phone had come from lady Police sub-Inspector accompanying the dead body at the Morgue, informing that doctor at Morgue refusing to keep the dead body in cold storage of Morgue and wanted post mortem to be done immediately, even though the dead body was not identified.
Meanwhile, relatives reached and identified. Since the dead body was not kept in cold storage, lady PSI had no option but to do panchanama and hand over papers for autopsy.
In a nutshell, the dead body was not permitted to be preserved in cold storage at all, with the presumption that it was a simple case of drowning.
