New Delhi, May 20 (IANS): Shrawani Joshi, the 19-year-old daughter of model-turned-actress Shikha Joshi, who was found dead in Mumbai on May 16, claimed her mother could never commit suicide as she was not a coward, and said she will fight till she gets justice.

"I will fight till justice is served to her," Shrawani told IANS on Wednesday.

She held plastic surgeon Vijay Sharma responsible for her mother's death and also said he was the reason behind disruptions in her academic life, too.

Shrawani said she just could not believe that her mother would slit her throat to end her life.

"Have you ever heard about such a brutal suicide?" she asked.

The 40-year-old Shikha was the only breadwinner of the family, her father having retired and brother unemployed.

Now a second-year student of political science at Delhi University's School of Open Learning, Shrawani was earlier studying in Mumbai.

But Shikha feared for her safety following persistent threats from the doctor, and decided to shift with her to her parents' home in Shakarpur in east Delhi, Shrawani said.

"All was well until she (Shikha) filed a complaint against Sharma. I was pursuing my studies in Mumbai and my mother's career was in full swing. But his (Sharma) regular threats forced my mother to bring me back to Delhi to stay with my family members. She also gave up her work in Mumbai and would travel to the city only for her case hearings," she said.

This time, too, Shrawani said, Shikha had gone to Mumbai to attend court proceedings, but was convinced to stay back as she had another hearing a month later.

"Her friend, Madhu Bharti, who she was staying with, suggested that she could stay in Mumbai for a month instead of going back to Delhi and pick up some acting assignments," Shrawani told IANS in the presence of her maternal uncle, Vishesh Joshi.

"These conditions left the family fearing for my safety. I returned to Delhi and was not even allowed to step out of the house. A few days ago, my mother told my uncle to ensure that I don't even use any social networking sites or online chat forums," Shrawani said.

Though there have been reports that Shikha was depressed and felt the molestation incident in 2011 had harmed her acting career, Shrawani rejected this.

"She was not the kind of person to take such an extreme step. That she chose such a painful way to end her life is just too difficult for me to believe. She had a very lively nature. Such stories are being created to weaken the case," Shrawani claimed.

The family had high hopes from the actress who went to Mumbai to work. "She was a source of strength for all of us."