Seetha's death due to wild elephant attack, not homicide; Action likely against assistant surgeon

PEERUMEDU: Police concluded the death of tribal woman Seetha, found dead inside the forest, was due to a wild elephant attack. The police rejected the postmortem report that stated the death of Seetha (42) of Plakkathadam village in Peerumedu as homicide. The report will be submitted to the court soon.

Seetha reached the Meenmutty forest on June 13, along with her husband, Binu, and their two children. Her husband and children confessed that a wild elephant had attacked Seetha. However, the findings of Assistant Surgeon Adarsh Radhakrishnan of Peerumedu Taluk Hospital, who conducted the postmortem, confirmed it as a case of homicide. The report also stated that there were marks of strangulation on the body and that there were signs that the head had been hit on a rough surface, such as a tree or stone, several times.

Police then turned suspicious of Binu after even the forest minister publicly stated about the murder angle. Subsequently, a special investigation team was appointed under the leadership of Peerumedu DySP Vishal Johnson and two SHOs. On June 16, an inspection conducted by police, forest and forensic officials at the scene found signs of a wild elephant attack. The police also clarified that the neck injury mentioned in the post-mortem report was sustained when her body was being taken to the hospital. Seetha’s ribs were damaged in the attack, and while rushing her to the hospital, they may have worsened.

The Health Department will take action against Dr. Adarsh Radhakrishnan, who performed the postmortem on the body. He jumped to the conclusion without even submitting the initial postmortem report. Adarsh, who went on unauthorised leave, submitted the postmortem report to the police after two weeks. Even during the high-level team led by the Deputy Director of the Health Department, which visited Peerumedu Hospital for investigation, Adarsh remained on leave.