KHARAGPUR: A 21-year-old student of IIT Kharagpur — described as “academically gifted” by the institute — died of suspected suicide in his hostel room on campus. Shaon Malik‘s parents, south Kolkata residents who drove down to meet him on Sunday morning with home-cooked food, found him hanging from the iron grille of his hostel windows.
Shaon, a third-year student of electrical engineering at the premier institute, had a good academic record and was involved in extra-curricular activities: he was a nine-pointer, a member of Druheen, the Bengali dramatic society of IIT, and had only a few days ago been offered a prized project by his professors. He last spoke to his mother at 11pm on Saturday.
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It was usual for Shaon’s parents to drive down to the Kharagpur campus almost every Sunday with home-cooked food. This Sunday, too, was no different — only, Shaon did not pick up their calls.
Around 11.30am, they signed their names at the Azad Hall hostel visitors’ register and went up to their son’s room, to find it locked from the inside. When banging on the door did not help, they managed to break open the door after a while with help from other boarders, only to find Shaon hanging from the window grille.
He was rushed to hospital, where he was declared dead.
A postmortem has been conducted at Midnapore Medical College Hospital. “We are probing all angles,” said West Midnapore SP Dhritiman Sarkar, who led a team of cops to the campus.
A forensic team has seized samples of the hostel mess food served at dinner; the police have also taken possession of Shaon’s student’s cellphone. Police sources said they were looking into whether he spoke to anyone after talking to his mother late on Saturday.
No formal complaint has been lodged yet, and the victim’s inconsolable parents did not speak to the media.
IIT Kharagpur Director Amit Patra, who met Shaon’s parents at the hospital morgue, said Shaon “was an academically gifted student, a topper, who was also interested in Bengali drama,” and that he was loved by his professors. “His professors also offered him a good project. We are speaking to a lot of people, but he told nobody anything to indicate unhappiness or anxiety. IIT will extend all possible help to the police in their probe,” Patra added.
IIT issued a statement that described Shaon as an “academically gifted student, (CGPA above 9), known for his intelligence, dedication and promising future in the field of electrical engineering.” The institute went on to say that the campus was “devastated” by the incident. “Our foremost priority at this moment is to extend our heartfelt condolences and support to Mr Malik’s family and friends.”
IIT also reminded its students that it was committed to their well-being and mental health. “We have a range of support services available, including counselling and mental health resources, and we urge students to utilise these services whenever needed,” it said.
