Goa Police informed a children’s court on Tuesday that Suchana Seth, the Bengaluru-based CEO accused of killing her four-year-old son, exhibited no signs of psychopathology during her mental health assessment. The assessment, conducted at the Institute of Psychiatry and Human Behaviour (IPHB) in Bambolim on February 2, revealed that Seth provided “clear and rational answers” during the evaluation.
According to a report by The Indian Express, the police’s reply to the court cited the assessment, stating that “serial mental status examinations did not reveal any case of psychopathology.” The report highlighted that Seth demonstrated rationality in her responses and showed no indications of suicidal tendencies or death wishes. Additionally, her judgement appeared intact, and no psychotic or pervasive mood symptoms were detected.
This development follows an application filed by Seth’s father in the court, asserting that she was suffering from an illness and incapable of presenting her defense due to her mental condition. He emphasized that Seth was in denial of her illness and urged for a medical evaluation of her mental health in the interest of justice.
During the previous hearing, the Goa Police informed the court that they were awaiting the report of Seth’s medical assessment. The court scheduled the next hearing for February 21 and extended Seth’s judicial custody remand till February 26.
Seth, a 39-year-old CEO of an AI startup called Mindful AI, was booked on January 9 for allegedly murdering her son in North Goa and transporting his body to Karnataka. She checked into a service apartment in North Goa’s Candolim with her son on January 6 but left for Karnataka on the intervening night of January 7-8. The police apprehended her at Aimangala police station in the Chitradurga district based on an alert from the Goa Police.
Earlier reports suggested that Seth’s actions were motivated by her desire to prevent her estranged husband from meeting their child. Seth and her husband, Venkat Raman, married in 2010, and their son was born in 2019. However, due to marital differences, the couple separated, and divorce proceedings are ongoing.
