- Shefali Jariwala died aged 42; cause of death not yet confirmed by autopsy report
- Maharashtra Home Minister said investigation will follow if autopsy reveals suspicious cause
- Mumbai police found medicines at her home, including glutathione, Vitamin C, and acidity pills
Days after actor-model Shefali Jariwala's death, Maharashtra Minister of State for Home Yogesh Kadam assured that if anything suspicious is found in the autopsy report, they will investigate it.
"I had stated on the first day that if there's any foul play or complaint, we would investigate accordingly. Let's wait for the post-mortem report, which will clarify the situation. If the report reveals anything suspicious, we will conduct an investigation and take appropriate action," he said.
The 'Kaanta Laga' fame actor-model died at the age of 42 last week. While the exact cause of her death is not confirmed yet, officials suggest she may have died of a cardiac arrest. Sources also suggested that food poisoning may also be another cause that led to the actor's death - which officials are investigating.
Mumbai police sources said Ms Jariwala had stored two boxes filled with medicines in her house, suggesting that she was likely self-medicating. The police and forensic experts, who visited Ms Jariwala's residence, found glutathione (a drug often used for skin fairness and detoxification), Vitamin C injections, and acidity pills, hinting at risky, unsupervised anti-ageing treatments.
Sources told NDTV that the actor-model had been consuming the anti-ageing medicines for the last seven to eight years - which were advised by a doctor years ago. They also said Ms Jariwala may have taken an injection of the anti-ageing medicine on an empty stomach the day she died, causing a cardiac arrest.
"There was a puja at home on June 27, due to which Shefali was fasting. Despite this, she took an injection of anti-ageing medicine in the afternoon of the same day. These medicines were advised to her by a doctor years ago, and since then, she has been taking this treatment every month. So far in the police investigation, it has come to light that these medicines could be a major reason for cardiac arrest," the source said.
However, doctors have said anti-ageing medication alone would not contribute to cardiovascular stress.
Ms Jariwala's autopsy has been performed at Cooper Hospital in Mumbai, but the opinion about her cause of death has been "reserved" for now.
Ms Jariwala shot to fame in 2002 with the remix music video 'Kaanta Laga'. She was also known for playing a brief role in the 2004 film 'Mujhse Shaadi Karogi'. The actor also featured on reality TV shows 'Nach Baliye 5' and 'Nach Baliye 7' alongside her actor-husband Parag Tyagi, and was seen as a contestant on the reality TV show Bigg Boss 13.
