PANAJI
It was on August 12, 2021, that a family from Mapusa filed a complaint about their 19-year-old daughter, Siddhi Naik, being missing after she was dropped off at a bus stop.
The very next day, the semi-naked body of the girl was found on the crowded Calangute beach. According to the police, the post-mortem report confirmed drowning as the cause of death while ruling out sexual assault.
Three years down the line, the police have failed to make any arrests or identify a suspect. Moreover, the police are yet to file a charge sheet in the case.
During the recently concluded Assembly session, the Chief Minister, Pramod Sawant, who also holds the Home portfolio, told the House that the matter is “still under investigation.” The police remain completely at a loss in this case, having no evidence whatsoever as to how the deceased reached Calangute beach.
Sawant even informed the House that no arrests have been made in the case.
The police, who examined the CCTV footage from nearby shacks in Calangute, could not find any trace of the girl. Although police sources claim that it seems to be an open-and-shut case, the family, on the other hand, continues to suspect it was murder.
The post-mortem report stated that she died of drowning, and there is no evidence of sexual assault or attack prior to her death. Hence, the police ruled out rape or assault.
“During the course of the investigation, we spoke to her family and friends, but nothing suspicious came to light. Also, her family members’ statements kept changing,” police said.
The police said that none of those they have spoken to as part of the investigation have pointed to any suspects yet.
According to the missing complaint filed by the woman’s father, the 19-year-old left for work on the morning of August 12 and was dropped off by her father at the bus stop, from where she would take a bus to work.
She worked as a salesperson at a shop in the city. But when she did not return home after work, her father filed a missing complaint at Mapusa police station.
