NEW DELHI / BHOPAL — In a major legal acceleration, the Madhya Pradesh High Court has expedited the schedule for dual petitions seeking the immediate cancellation of anticipatory bail granted to retired judicial officer Giribala Singh in connection with the suspicious dowry death of her daughter-in-law, 33-year-old actor-model Twisha Sharma.

The vacation bench of Justice Devnarayan Mishra advanced the crucial hearing to May 27, 2026, responding to urgent appeals from both the State Government of Madhya Pradesh and the victim’s grieving family regarding the critical risk of evidence tampering.

State and Family Flag Evidentiary Tampering Risks

Appearing before the High Court, legal representatives for Twisha’s family—along side Solicitor General Tushar Mehta—argued that allowing the retired district judge to remain out on anticipatory bail presented a severe threat to an impartial investigation. Mehta stressed that every single day the accused stays free increases the likelihood of essential digital and physical evidence being compromised.

The High Court acknowledged the defense’s argument that they had not yet received the independent petition copy filed by Twisha’s father, Navnidhi Sharma. To maintain clean judicial protocol, Justice Mishra directed that formal notices be served and explicitly granted a strict two-day window for Giribala Singh’s legal team to submit their combined reply.

The case traces back to May 12, 2026, when Twisha Sharma was found hanging under highly suspicious circumstances at her matrimonial home in Bhopal, just five months after marrying Samarth Singh. A formal FIR invoking charges of dowry death ($Section\ 304B$) and domestic cruelty ($Section\ 498A$) was registered on May 15.

Supreme Court Intervenes Suo Motu; CBI Ordered to Take Over

The high-voltage proceedings in the state court coincided with an extraordinary intervention by the Supreme Court of India. Taking suo motu cognizance of the operational handling of the probe, a top-court bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant voiced serious anxieties over potential structural interference in local law enforcement due to the mother-in-law’s influential background in the judiciary.

The apex court strongly endorsed the MP High Court’s directive for a secondary autopsy—which was conducted by a premier expert medical panel from AIIMS New Delhi—and ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to officially assume full control of the probe from the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Bhopal Police.

Reflecting on the societal gravity of the tragedy during the Supreme Court proceedings, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta remarked:

“It is a harrowing reminder for our society that it is always better to have a divorced daughter returning home safe than a dead daughter carried away from her matrimonial house.”

Husband Interrogated Following Extended Escape

While Giribala Singh was questioned by the local police for the first time on Monday, her son and Twisha’s husband, Samarth Singh, remains under strict police remand.

Bhopal Police confirmed they are actively tracing a network of local individuals who allegedly assisted Samarth in evading arrest for over a week while a localized $\text{Rs 30,000}$ cash bounty and an international lookout circular were active against him.