Haryana Manisha death case: What forced govt to transfer probe to CBI?

A week after the death of a 19-year-old playschool teacher, Manisha, in Haryana’s Bhiwani district triggered massive public outrage, the state government has decided to hand over the probe to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The crucial decision was preceded by days of intense protests, internet shutdown and a raft of suspensions.

Manisha, who went missing on August 11, was found dead on the fields near Singhani on August 13. As the initial police probe indicated suicide, Manisha’s father, Sanjay, insisted his daughter would not commit suicide and that the police ignored the injuries on her body and did not explain the chain of events.

According to Sanjay, his daughter had said she would go to a local nursing college to seek admission. “I received a missed call from Manisha around 6 pm on 11 August. When I called back, there was no response. I was worried, and I dialled the 112 police helpline and went with them to the nursing college to find out the time of my daughter’s visit. They refused outright. Even when police went again for the CCTV footage, they refused. The college later shared CCTV visuals, but it is suspected to have been tampered with,” he alleged. He said that cops had told him Manisha must have run away and might come after some days.

For days, protests spread across Dadri, Badhra and Loharu as students, villagers and khap leaders demanded arrests and a murder investigation. The government was forced to take punitive action; the district police chief was transferred, and five personnel were suspended for alleged lapses. On Tuesday morning, the villagers cut off access roads to Dhani Laxman in Bhiwani district and declared they would not allow the last rites until the case was handed to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Hours earlier, Manisha’s father had released a video alleging that he was being pressurised to give consent for the cremation of Manisha's mortal remains.

The Haryana government responded by suspending mobile internet, bulk SMS and dongle services across Bhiwani and neighbouring Charkhi Dadri for 48 hours, citing the risk of rumours and mobilisation.

The police said that two separate medical examinations—first in Bhiwani and then at PGIMS Rohtak—produced no evidence of sexual assault, and the presence of insecticide was detected in the stomach. They also said a note, allegedly a suicide letter, was recovered from a bag alongside her ID documents. CCTV, shop-register entries and witness testimonies were cited to claim that Manisha had purchased pesticide near the school on August 11.

Bhiwani SP Sumit Kumar has brushed aside claims about 'slit throat' and 'missing' body parts as misleading. He said a suicide note was recovered from her bag and that a preliminary handwriting comparison matched that of Manisha.

Rohtak Range IG Y Purna Kumar told reporters there were no acid burns and that “vital organs below the neck” were not missing in the sense of surgical removal, and that injuries initially read as a cut were consistent with animal activity (gnawing) on a decomposed body. He further said viscera analysis confirmed traces of pesticide, and that the suicide note was in police custody since August 13. The Sarvajatiya Phogat Khap convened an emergency panchayat and announced support for the family’s demand for a CBI probe.

Rohtak-based senior advocate Pradeep Malik has raised questions about the entire matter and the autopsy report. He expressed apprehension that the police tried to conceal facts in this case. There are several points in the postmortem report that, he says, deepen this impression.

On Tuesday, Pradeep Malik posted an excerpt from Manisha’s postmortem report on social media. He wrote: “These lines from the postmortem conducted in Bhiwani are enough to show that she was abused and strangled.” He said that the postmortem reports of Manisha from Bhiwani and Rohtak hospitals do not tally with each other; they differ significantly.

Manisha's home in Dhani Laxman in Bhiwani district has become a site of collective mourning. Women guard the approach road, and classmates leave flowers at the shuttered village school. Her grandfather Ramkishan said she wanted to study further and take admission in a nursing college, recalling he had promised to “sell a buffalo” if needed for fees.

After facing massive statewide protests over Manisha’s death—with students, kisan unions and opposition political parties expressing solidarity and demanding a high-level probe—Chief Minister Nayab Saini relented, announcing a CBI investigation via a tweet. The Chief Minister’s message read: “For justice to Bhiwani’s daughter Manisha and her family, the state government and police are dealing with this case with utmost sensitivity and responsibility. I am personally taking all updates related to this probe. As per the family’s demand, the government is handing over the investigation to the CBI to ensure justice and an impartial inquiry.”

Meanwhile, Manisha’s father expressed satisfaction and said the family would be ready for cremation after consulting the village committee supporting the demand for justice.