Photos of the purported suicide note left behind by Payal Tadvi, a doctor at a civic hospital here who killed herself after alleged casteist slurs by her senior colleagues, have been recovered from her mobile phone, a lawyer privy to the case said on July 5.

The suicide note, a crucial piece of evidence which was missing till now, mentions that three senior women doctors arrested in the case, used to hurl casteist abuses and intimidate her, he said. The three doctors -- Hema Ahuja, Ankita Khandelwal and Bhakti Meher -- were arrested for allegedly abetting Tadvi's suicide and are currently in jail under judicial custody.

Pictures of the suicide note as well as photos of the three accused doctors were found in the victim's mobile phone during forensic examination of the device, the lawyer said. With pictures coming to light, it is clear the victim had written a suicide note and it needs to be probed who destroyed it, the laywer said.

The police should seek custody of the accused to probe the matter further, he added. Meanwhile, the three doctors moved the Bombay High Court last week against a special court order rejecting their bail pleas on June 24. The three doctors are in jail since May 29. Tadvi (26), a second year post-graduate medical student attached to B Y L Nair Hospital in Central Mumbai, had hanged herself in hostel room on May 22, police have said.

Tadvi's family had accused Ahuja, Meher and Khandelwal of ragging and hurling casteist abuses at her, charges denied by the trio. In their pleas to the HC, the women doctors have claimed they have been falsely implicated in the case and that they had only pulled up Tadvi, an adivasi, for failing to do her job properly at the hospital.

The suicide of Tadvi had caused a public outrage and led to protests by various organisations. The accused have been booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Maharashtra Prohibition of Ragging Act and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Their bail pleas will come up for further hearing in the high court on July 16.