3rd Year MBBS student missing case: Court permits police to run narco test on lifeguard

The deceased was an MBBS medico and she was supposed to appear for her prelims at JJ Hospital but went missing from Bandstand. The accused lifeguard claimed that he saw the medico going toward Bandstand and tried to have a conversation with her.

She had left her house on November 29 morning to appear for her third MBBS prelims at Grant Government Medical College. She boarded the 9.58 am local from Virar station and got off at Andheri station to board a fast train. She had called her brother and said that she would call again at 5.30 pm, until when her phone would be switched off. However, when she did not return home till late in the night, her family got worried and started looking for her. They then filed a missing person report at the Boisar police station.

"The woman was last seen heading towards the seashore opposite Taj Lands End hotel and was captured in the CCTV cameras installed at Bandstand at 12.30 am," one of the investigating police officers informed Hindustan Times.

The lifeguard on duty claimed that he had spotted her and followed her in order to ensure her safety. "Noticing that I was following her, the medico told me that she was not there to end her life. We then started chatting and sat on a rock till 3.30 am. During this period, I clicked four selfies with her on my mobile phone while Sane took one selfie on her phone with me," the lifeguard said in his statement to the police.

He further added that the medico shared a lot of details about her school and college life, also about her friends and he was just listening to her. " I just listened to her and at 3:30 am she asked me to leave, saying her friend was coming to meet her. So, I left the place," he added. Her father reported her missing to the Bandra police on November 30 when she did not come back home and her phone was turned off. In December, the case was moved to Crime Branch Unit 9.

After checking the footage of all CCTV cameras installed at the Bandstand and adjoining areas, but no camera showed her returning from the seashore. Her mobile phone was switched off, and there were no calls, messages, or internet activity on her phone thereafter. More than 100 car drivers were also questioned by police, but they produced no leads. Additionally, once she disappeared, there was no transaction or withdrawal from her bank account.

"We have questioned her friends, family members, and relatives to get some clue about her disappearance, but haven't got anything so far," the police officer quoted above said. After months of the missing case being lodged, the crime branch secured the consent of the lifeguard for a narco analysis test and approached the sessions court, which has also granted its permission.

Police inspector Sanjay Khatade of unit 9 stated that all possible scenarios including technical aspects like WhatsApp messages, call records, Instagram, Telegram, and her e-mail account, have been thoroughly investigated by the police but nothing suspicious could be found. "The test will be conducted at the forensic science laboratory, Kalina," a senior police officer said.