Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has sought a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe to uncover the truth behind the mysterious death of an IIT-Kharagpur student from Assam.
In the wake of a second autopsy revealing gunshot and stab wounds on the exhumed body of the deceased student, the Chief Minister has written a letter to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, requesting her to hand over the case of the death of Faizan Ahmed to the CBI for a “transparent and fair” investigation.
Faizan, a 24-year-old resident of Tinsukia in Upper Assam and a third-year mechanical engineering student at IIT-Kharagpur, was found dead in his hostel room on October 14, 2022.
While IIT-Kharagpur authorities claimed Faizan’s death was a suicide, his parents suspected foul play, observing grievous injury marks on his body. They demanded an investigation into the “unnatural death” of their son and filed a report with the police in Kharagpur, requesting the SP of Paschim Medinipur and the inspector-in-charge of Kharagpur (town) police station to look into the matter.
In his letter to Banerjee, Sarma stated that, in accordance with a directive from the Calcutta High Court, a second autopsy was conducted by exhuming Faizan’s body.
“According to the second forensic report, there was a gunshot wound on the upper left side of Faizan Ahmed’s neck and a stab wound on the right side of his neck,” Sarma stated in the letter.
“In view of the shocking findings of the latest forensic report, it is imperative that the perpetrators of this horrific crime, as well as any other person involved in concealing the crime, are brought to justice. I, therefore, request you to kindly hand over the case to the CBI for a transparent and fair investigation,” he added.
Notably, on October 20, 2022, Sarma had written to Banerjee requesting a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of the student.
“The sudden mysterious death of this bright young man has evoked a deep sense of grief in Assam. On behalf of the parents, I request your intervention so that a thorough investigation is carried out into the circumstances surrounding the death of Faizan Ahmed,” Sarma stated in the earlier letter.
In May last year, Faizan’s mother moved the Calcutta High Court, seeking a transparent probe by a special investigation team. The court subsequently ordered the exhumation of his remains, and a second post-mortem was conducted.
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