Khar Murder Investigation: Police say injuries on accused don't match the sequence of events

Shree Jogdhankar outside Bandra court on January 2. Police have been able to question him only once so far. Pic/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

The Khar police investigating the murder of the 19-year-old psychology student have sought the opinion of forensic experts to understand the nature of injuries of one of the accused, Shree Jogdhankar. According to the police, Jogdhankar's injuries are not consistent with the sequence of events, established through the questioning of co-accused Diya Padalkar and statements of guests from the New Year's Eve party.

When asked if there's a possibility of Jogdhankar's injuries being self-inflicted, a senior officer said, "We have certain questions related to the accused's injuries. To get clarity on the nature of the injuries, we have sent our queries to forensic experts."

Shree Jogdhankar

"One cannot injure oneself on the back. We do not want to jump to conclusions without getting the opinion of experts," the officer added.

According to the police, Jogdhankar has an eight-inch long cut on his head, his ribs are fractured and there are multiple injuries on his back. "His injuries are not matching the sequence of events. Hence we need to get forensic experts' opinion. It will give us further leads in the investigation," the officer added.

Accused Diya Padalkar

Jogdhankar and Padalkar were arrested by the Khar police on Friday, January 1. Jogdhankar has been questioned only once so far. After the first questioning, he got admitted to Cooper hospital on January 2 to get his wounds treated. The police will also get more clarity after they get to question him and recreate the crime scene.

Meanwhile, the victim's family, along with activist Asif Bhambla, met Home Minister Anil Deshmukh on Wednesday evening.

The family, represented by Bhamla Foundation, has demanded that the case be tried in a fast track court and a special public prosecutor be appointed to secure maximum punishment for the accused. "The home minister listened to the family for around one hour and accepted their demands. He also spoke to the commissioner of police and joint commissioner of police (law and order) about the case," Bhambla told mid-day.

Jan 1
Day Shree Jogdhankar and Diya Padalkar were arrested