‘Moment of pride for village when he got admission’: Kin of IIT-Delhi student who died by suicide

Anil’s eldest brother Amit Kumar, who operates a tempo in their hometown in UP’s Banda, said it was only last month that he had taken leave from college to come back to the village and meet their mother, Vidya Devi (45). Their father, Suresh Kumar (53), had died two years ago.

“He didn’t tell us if he was being harassed by anyone or was under pressure due to studies. He was a quiet kid and did not interact a lot with other students. It was a moment of pride for the village when he got into IIT… he did his schooling from Banda,” Amit told The Indian Express.

He added that Anil last spoke to him two days ago, asking for Rs 15,000 for a new phone as his had stopped working. “We used to send him Rs 3,000 every month as pocket money…,” said Amit.

Anil’s brother-in-law, Vimal Kumar, said the family had no inkling about his academic status as he did not share a lot with them. “When we first heard the news about his death, we could not believe it…,” he said.

According to a senior police officer, it appears the incident took place two days ago as the body was in a decomposed state. “So far, no foul play has emerged and we have not recovered any suicide note… It has come to light that the student was not performing well due to which he had mental trauma… his body has been kept at Safdarjung Hospital and his parents have been informed. Further probe is ongoing,” said the officer.

‘Student didn’t go home for Rakhi’

In an email to students, IIT-Delhi Director Rangan Banerjee wrote, “ With a very heavy heart, it is my unfortunate duty to inform you of the very sad and untimely demise of a young member of our community, Anil Kumar…, a resident of Vindhya-chal hostel… Unfortunately, Anil was found… hanging in his room, which was locked from inside… This tragic loss is also compounded by the fact that Anil belonged to the SC community.”

The email further said a condolence meeting would be organised next week and it requested students to avail the institute’s counselling services.

A few weeks ago, Banerjee had referred to mental health initiatives at the institute and stated that they were enhancing counselling. He also said they have revamped the exam system to reduce pressure on students.

An official from IIT-Delhi, on condition of anonymity, said, “Despite continuous efforts towards sensitisation, we still need to do better as students are not coming forward with their issues… we found that the student (Anil) hailed from Banda district in UP and lost his father a while ago. He did not go home for Rakhi celebrations either. We spoke to his friends and family and it was an unfortunate incident as no one saw this coming.”

This is the second such incident at IIT-Delhi in the past two months. In July, a BTech student, Ayush Ashna, was found hanging in the hostel. He was from the SC community. The institute constituted its SC/ST cell on March 16.