Jadavpur University: Student found hanging, kin allege murder

Kolkata: An MA student at Jadavpur University was Sunday found hanging in his room in the varsity's main hostel, police said, even as his family alleged foul play in the incident.

Soumitra Dey (23), a second-year student of Philosophy, was found hanging from the ceiling fan of his room in block B of the main hostel after fellow students broke open the door when their repeated calls went unanswered at around 11 am, an officer of the Jadavpur police station said.

JU registrar Pradip Kumar Ghosh, who rushed to the scene along with vice-chancellor Suranjan Das, said, “It was a sad and unfortunate incident. The student was brilliant. He was jovial also. We are looking into why such an incident happened.”

Dey's family members, who came down to the city from Bankura in the afternoon, alleged the boy was murdered and then hung from the ceiling fan to make it look like it was a case of suicide.

Dey, who hailed from Bankura district's Joypur, had been taken to the MR Bangur Hospital where he was declared dead on arrival.

His hostel room's door was locked from the inside and when De's body was pulled down, it was found that the student was wearing a headphone, attached to a cell phone, the officer said.

Asked whether there was any foul play in the death, the officer said, “It is too early to draw a conclusion in this regard. We need to wait for the post-mortem report. But, going by the circumstantial evidence it seems this can be a case of suicide,” he said.

Initial probe indicated that the boy, considered a bright student by the professors, had been in depression for some time, the officer added.

Giving details, Mr Ghosh said, “At around 11.30 am, when the students gathered for their lunch, they found Soumitra was not present. Some of them went to his room and found it locked from the inside. Getting no response after repeated knocks, they broke open the door and found the student hanging. Hostel superintendent soon informed me about the incident.”

He added, “The police was later informed. The body has been sent for-post-mortem. The deceased student's family, too, has been informed.”

Dey's roommate Bishwajit went home on leave recently.

Dey was last seen talking to someone over phone at around 5.30 pm on Saturday. His father Lakshman Dey, however, said there was no reason that his son would commit suicide.

“I am a potato trader. There was no financial problem for his studies,” he added. The student's elder brother, Shrimanta, said, “My brother fared well in the semester examination on December 2. He spoke to me and our parents later. He did not commit suicide. He was murdered in a planned way before his body was hung.” He added, “If the police do not take any action, I will move the Calcutta high court seeking a CBI probe in the case.”