IIT Bombay 2nd-year student dies by suicide, handwritten notes found in room

A second year student at IIT Bombay has committed suicide. He was found hanging in his hostel room by the hostel security.

Second year student of IIT Bombay died by suicideSecond year student of IIT Bombay died by suicide. (Representational Photo)

A 20-year-old student of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay was found dead in his hostel room late Tuesday after his parents, who were unable to contact him, alerted the institute authorities. Police have found handwritten romantic poems in the student’s room, and are trying to ascertain if ‘unrequited love’ could have triggered him to take this step.

The deceased has been identified as Sohail Rajkumar Sangwan, a second-year Material Science student and a native of Delhi. Sohail Rajkumar Sangwan, who was staying on the fourth floor of IIT-Bombay hostel number 4, was found hanging from the ceiling fan using a bedsheet.

“Powai police were informed at around 11:45pm following which a team rushed to the campus. The body was sent for post-mortem, and a panchnama of the hostel room was conducted,” said a police officer.

The incident came to light after repeated calls to the IIT-Bombay student went unanswered. His family then contacted the institute authorities. A hostel security in-charge, accompanied by a student, went to his room and found him hanging.

The police believe the incident occurred on Tuesday afternoon, although it was reported late night.

Police have so far recorded the statements of Sangwan’s classmates and also found a few handwritten notes containing romantic poems. While these writings indicate that he may have been dealing with unrequited love, and official has said that they are “yet to establish whether this [love angle] had any connection with his death.”

The student’s family is expected to reach Mumbai on Wednesday. Police have seized his mobile phone and laptop to analyse his call data records and WhatsApp chats and find out what may have led him to take this step. An Accidental Death Report (ADR) has been registered, and further investigation is underway, a senior officer from Powai police station said.

What IIT Bombay said on student’s suicide

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IIT Bombay Director Professor Shireesh Kedare, in an email sent to all the students, expressed condolences to the deceased’s family and friends and said, “There is an indication that he took his own life due to personal reasons. The police are investigating the matter in detail.”

He further said that he was “really disturbed” that “in spite of strengthening the wellness support system, being proactive in supporting students through multiple workshops, interactions with alumni and faculty, this unfortunate incident has happened.”

The director further acknowledged the need to do more to reach out to the students facing personal problems. “We all, including wardens, faculty advisors, course instructors as well as hall managers and staff, have been taking efforts to reach out to students by being sensitive and alert. But it is clear that we need to do much more,” the director said in the email, further requesting everyone’s support to deal with the situation and the challenge at hand “in an effective manner.”

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