A first-year B.Tech student from a private engineering college in Bhubaneswar died on Saturday night in a suspected suicide case, though his parents have alleged foul play and claimed he was a victim of ragging.
Parents File Complaint
On Sunday, the victim's father lodged a formal complaint at the Infocity police station against the college management, accusing them of negligence that led to his son's death. The student hailed from Jagatsinghpur district.
Conflicting Accounts
College authorities informed the family that the student had allegedly attempted suicide. However, the parents insisted he was subjected to ragging by seniors. According to the father, the college contacted him late Saturday night, saying his son had been found unconscious in his hostel room and was admitted to a nearby private hospital. He later learned that his son had died during treatment.
“I was told that he had attempted suicide. He called us around 10 pm on Saturday and said he was going for dinner. Barely an hour later, the college authorities informed us that he had been taken to hospital,” the father said. He added that when he visited the hostel room after the incident, he found a chair placed on the bed and a towel hanging from the ceiling fan. “But there is no way he could have taken that step because he told us everything. He sounded normal when we spoke to him,” he stated.
Protests and Allegations
Following the student's death, protests erupted on the campus, with a section of students alleging that he was subjected to ragging by seniors. The parents also claimed that they had previously informed college and hostel authorities about the ragging, but no action was taken against the accused students.
College Denies Foul Play
College authorities denied any foul play and stated that the student was rushed to the hospital immediately after they received information about the incident. “The Infocity police have been informed and an investigation is underway,” a college official said. The official added that the institution has an anti-ragging committee in place and that no formal complaint of ragging was received from the victim. “The exact circumstances leading to his death will become clear only after the police investigation is completed,” the official added.
