Payal Tadvi suicide: HC to hear bail pleas of doctors on Thursday

The Bombay High Court has posted on Thursday the hearing into the bail pleas of three women doctors arrested for allegedly abetting the suicide of their junior colleague by tormenting her with casteist slurs at a hospital here.

Special public prosecutor Raja Thakare, appearing for the city police's crime branch, told a single bench of Justice D S Naidu on Tuesday that the charge sheet in the case would be filed before a special court later in the day or on Wednesday.

The three women's advocate, Aabad Ponda, then said if the probe in the case was over, the accused need not be kept in jail.

Justice Naidu posted the bail petitions filed by the three doctors -- Hema Ahuja, Bhakti Meher and Ankita Khandelwal -- for hearing on Thursday, saying the court needed to consider certain factors while taking a decision on their pleas.

The three doctors were booked after Payal Tadvi, 26, a second-year postgraduate medical student attached to the civic body-run B Y L Nair Hospital, allegedly committed suicide in her hostel room on May 22.

Tadvi's family alleged that the accused taunted her by ragging and hurling casteist abuses as she belonged to a Scheduled Tribe.

"When it comes to regular bail (once charge sheet is filed), three factors need to be considered," Justice Naidu said.

"First, if the accused persons will flee or abscond. Second, if they will tamper with the evidence or witnesses. And third, if the accused will cause harm to the society in general," the bench said. "We will consider all these factors while deciding the bail pleas."

The three doctors were arrested on May 29 and booked for abetment of suicide and destruction of evidence under the Indian Penal Code, and various sections of the Maharashtra Prohibition of Ragging Act, and the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities). They are currently in judicial custody.

-PTI

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