The 18-year-old woman, who was found dead in Krishnanagar town in Nadia district of West Bengal, had “ante-mortem” burn injuries on her face, the doctors who conducted the post mortem said on Thursday.
“She got burn injuries while she was alive. We found no evidence of acid burns,” Dr Soumyajyoti Banerjee told mediapersons after conducting the post mortem at Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial (JNM) Hospital in Kalyani.
The parents of the 18-year-old have claimed that she was gang raped before she was killed. They also alleged that the face of their daughter was burnt by acid to destroy evidence.
On whether she was raped, Dr Banerjee said: “We still have some chemical tests left to do. Until they are done, I can’t say anything about it… Some more investigations are pending.”
Sources in the police, however, said that till now they have not found any evidence of sexual assault.
Police have arrested a youth on a complaint lodged by her family. “The two were in a relationship for four months. We have found that he had given her Rs 40,000,” said a police officer involved in the probe.
The arrested 18-year-old accused was produced in a court on Thursday and remanded to seven-day police custody.
Meanwhile, a Special Investigation Team (SIT), led by Superintendent of Police Amarnath K, has been formed to probe the woman’s death.
ADG (South Bengal) Supratim Sarkar said the CID (Criminal Investigation Department) of the West Bengal Police will also supervise the probe.
“The woman’s family wanted the post mortem to be done in the presence of a judicial magistrate. Accordingly, we approached the court, and the post mortem was conducted in the presence of a judicial magistrate at JNM Hospital. The family is grieving now. They have lost their child. This is a tragic incident,” said Sarkar, who visited the spot where the woman’s body was found.
The 18-year-old woman was found dead on Wednesday morning on a roadside in an area that houses offices and residences of top district administration officials.
Speaking to mediapersons on Thursday, the mother of the woman said: “I can’t say why my daughter was killed. I don’t believe that he (the arrested accused) did it alone. More people are involved. She was my (Goddess) Lakshmi. I saw her body on Lakshmi Puja. I want the CBI to probe the case. If required, I would take the case to the High Court.”
According to her, the daughter left home on Tuesday evening, saying she was going out to have pizza. Her last Facebook post read, “No one is responsible for my death. I am responsible. You stay well.”
Reacting to her social media post, the woman’s mother said: “She was forced to write that Facebook post so that the crime could be passed off as death by suicide.”