IIT Kharagpur Student Was Murdered, Allege Parents, Demand Special Probe

The family of the 23-year-old Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur student, whose semi-decomposed body was recovered from his hostel room on October 14, has now moved the Calcutta High Court alleging that he was killed. They are demanding a probe by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) or a special probe team.

Faizan Ahmed, a third-year mechanical engineering student, had died in mysterious circumstances. It was initially suspected to be a suicide.

The petition was filed in the Calcutta High Court by Faizan Ahmed's parents, Salim Ahmed and Rahana Ahmed. Stating that he was their only child, the couple has requested the High Court to order a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Criminal Investigation Department (CID), or any other specialised investigative agency or Special Investigation Team after raising several questions around the circumstances leading to his death. 

The parents also say that there was an attempt to convince them that Faizan Ahmed was 'mentally disturbed' and had died by suicide. They allege that they were told their son had reportedly refused to be part of an 'assimilation programme' -- which they describe as "a glorious term for ragging" -- after which he was ignored and isolated.

Despite repeated emails and telephone calls, IIT Kharagpur did not respond to NDTV's questions on the incident.

The next hearing in this plea will take place on Thursday in the court of Justice Rajasekhar Mantha. The student, who is from Tinsukia in Assam, had moved into the hostel recently.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had also written to West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee requesting a detailed investigation into the death. The untimely death of Faizan Ahmed has caused a deep sense of grief in Assam, Mr Sarma said, requesting a thorough probe into the case.

Multiple incidents of deaths by suicide have shaken the campuses of India's premier science and technology institute in recent months. Last month, two IIT students were found dead on two separate campuses.

On September 15, an undergraduate student was found dead at IIT Madras in Chennai in a suspected case of suicide. 

On September 17, another student at IIT Guwahati was found dead in his hostel room in yet another suspected case of death by suicide. 

In September itself, two suicides were reported in two days from IIT campuses in Hyderabad and Kanpur.

In July this year, a 22-year-old engineer was found dead inside the hockey stadium at IIT Madras. Preliminary investigations revealed he had died by suicide. He was working as a project engineer at IIT Madras and had left a note, stating he was unable to cope with work, said police.