Payal Tadvi Suicide: Court directs proceedings to be videographed

A Mumbai court invoked Article 15 of the Constitution and directed in-camera proceeding of the suicide case of 26-year-old doctor, Payal Tadvi, the lawyer of the deceased said on Monday.

Speaking to ANI outside the Bombay Civil and Sessions Court, Lawyer Gunaratna Sadavarte said: "Our appeal to the court to invoke Article 15 of the Constitution and to allow in-camera proceeding of the case was approved today. The judge also approved our request to take the victim's mother's testimony in the court. The court has said that that the bail plea of the three accused will be heard only after the in-camera proceedings commence and also directed the court authorities to accommodate a camera to record the proceedings on the next date of hearing."

The doctor trio - Hema Ahuja, Ankita Khandelwal and Bhakti Mehre - who were booked under charges of abetment of suicide and various provisions of the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, opposed the court's direction and created ruckus in the courtroom to show their resentment.

Tadvi, who belonged to a Scheduled Tribe community, ended her life in her hostel room at BYL Nair Hospital here on May 22, allegedly after facing harassment from her seniors due to her caste.The post-mortem examination report of Tadvi's death released on Wednesday revealed the evidence of a ligature mark on her neck.

The accused were earlier in judicial custody till June 10. The Crime Branch took over the investigation from Agripada Police station on May 30.