Shefali Jeriwala death: Forensic tests underway, cause of death still unclear

India Today

02-07-2025

Actor Shefali Jariwala's death is still a mystery as the panel of the five forensic doctors at Cooper hospital who performed post-mortem or autopsy on her body reserved their opinion on the cause of death. They have sent samples for post-mortem histology and the preserved viscera for chemical analysis to Kalina Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL).Speaking to India Today TV, police officials, privy to the investigations, said that histopathology is done only in cases where the cause of death is not clear during the autopsy and also if the viscera have been preserved for chemical analysis. Once both the evaluations are completed and the report is submitted by FSL, the cause of death will be determined.advertisementAs per open source information, histopathological after-death report, or post-mortem histology, is primarily done to determine the cause and manner of death when it's not readily apparent from a macroscopic (external and gross internal) examination during an autopsy. It involves examining tissue samples under a microscope to identify subtle changes or specific disease processes that may have contributed to or caused the death.Purpose of histopathology in post-mortem examinations:
Determining cause and manner of death:When the cause of death isn't clear after a standard autopsy, histology can reveal microscopic evidence of disease, injury, or other conditions that might have led to the fatality.Confirming macroscopic findings:Histology can confirm and refine diagnoses made during the gross autopsy, providing a more detailed understanding of the pathological changes.Identifying subtle or microscopic pathology:advertisementSome diseases or injuries have microscopic characteristics that are only visible under a microscope, such as myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) or amniotic fluid embolism.The chemical analysis of viscera will help find if there was any kind of poison or toxins in the body which led to the fatality or sudden cardiac arrest leading to death.Shefali Jariwala's last momentsPolice officials have found CCTV footage of Jariwala's room and have accessed the footage. As per police officials, Jariwala was fasting the whole day as there was puja at her residence that day, but after 8:30 pm, she had some stale fried rice which was brought a day ago and then kept in the fridge. The fried rice was heated, and consumed.Soon after, she felt uneasy and acidic - so she had a tablet of 40 mg of Pantoprazole and 30 mg of Domperidone. During the day, she reportedly got a vial of anti-ageing medication that was administered by a medical professional at her residence.As per police officials, her uneasiness grew after 10:15 pm and at around 10:30 pm she collapsed. Her body started trembling, after which the house staff alerted her husband, Parag Tyagi, who had taken their dog out for a walk. Parag immediately rushed upstairs, and in his statement to the police, he said that he could feel the pulse of Shefali when he went back upstairs, after which they rushed her to Bellevue hospital in Andheri West.advertisementAt the Bellevue hospital, Shefali was declared dead before admission and her family was told to take the body to Cooper hospital. Police officials received the call at 11:30 pm, and they reached the hospital at 11:45 pm."We checked the house and found two boxes of medication which consisted of Glutathione injections, Vitamin-C pills and some other medication at the house. We checked the dustbin and collected packets of food and injections. We checked the dustbin and collected food packets, wrappers, medication packets and vials from it. We also learnt that many of those medications were not prescribed or had been prescribed long back. She was taking medicines herself for anti-ageing and skin glow," an officer told India Today."CCTV footage from the house has been analysed, statements of family members and the person who had administered the vial that day have been taken. As of now, no foul play has come to light or been alleged by anyone. "But, we are taking all possible measures as per procedure to ascertain the cause of death," said an officer privy to the investigation.Police officers spoke to the forensic doctors at the Cooper hospital, and they suspected that the death could be due to a sudden major drop in blood pressure which led to cardiac arrest. The cause of her death and cause of the sudden drop in blood pressure could be due to multiple reasons, which are fasting, self-medication during fasting or even the stale food she had that evening.- EndsMust Watch