The 20-year-old veterinary student Sidharthan JS, whose body was found hanging inside the bathroom of the college hostel in Kerala’s Wayanad district on February 18, was assaulted for around 29 hours “continuously" by seniors and classmates before he died by suicide, according to a media report.Citing information from Kerala police’s file that was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), a report by Indian Express said seniors and peers “physically and mentally tortured" Sidharthan, driving him to take his own life.
CBI took over the probe into the death of the second-year student of the College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences in Kerala’s Wayanad district on Friday evening.
Citing the police documents, IE reported that Sidharthan was subjected to ‘cruel ragging’ by his peers and seniors from 9 am on February 16 to 2 pm on February 17. They reportedly assaulted him with hands and using a belt.
“This made him in an utter stage of mental stress and feeling that he can neither continue study in the Institute and complete this course nor go home dropping the course. As he is so mentally stressed, he felt that there is no option for him other than suicide, he committed suicide by hanging himself in the bathroom of men’s hostel in between 12.30 pm and 13.45 pm on February 18," IE reported citing the police documents.
Police had initially registered a case of unnatural death, but during the investigation conducted so far, it is understood from the report produced by the anti-ragging squad of the college, from the statement of the dean of the college, from the statement of the medical officer, who conducted autopsy and from the statement of the other witnesses, Sidharthan, was ‘physically and mentally tortured’ by some senior students and classmates," the report added.