PANAJI
In a setback for Bengaluru AI startup founder Suchana Seth – charged with killing her four-year-old son in Candolim on January 8 – a second medical opinion has confirmed she is mentally fit. Moreover, a forensic report has ascertained that the handwriting on the torn tissue napkin found near the trolley luggage bag containing her son’s body is indeed hers.
The Children’s Court, in March, granted her father’s plea for a re-examination of Suchana’s mental health by the Mental Health Authority. Her father had filed the application in February, challenging the report from the Institute of Psychiatry and Human Behaviour (IPHB) in Bambolim, which had declared her mentally stable.
The Calangute police have confirmed to The Goan that with the fresh psychiatric assessment also confirming her mental fitness, they have submitted the report to the Children’s Court, which has already started trial in the case.
The tissue napkin, sent for forensic examination to Pune Central Forensic Science Laboratory had stated that the child did not want to go to Venkat Raman, Suchana’s husband.
“My son begged me not to send him to my violent abusive ex-husband. My ex-husband and the family court judge are threatening to send me to jail if I don’t send my 4-year-old son against his will. My lawyer can’t find a way to keep my son safe. I can’t bear this,” the note stated.
The crumpled napkin also contained blood stains, reportedly of the accused as she allegedly tried to harm herself after committing the murder.
