Thiruvananthapuram: The parents of Nithin Raj, the first-year BDS student who died by suicide in April, met Kerala Chief Minister V D Satheesan on Wednesday, seeking a thorough investigation into the case and urging that the probe be entrusted to a higher agency.
The family demanded that those responsible for Nithin’s death be brought to justice. The meeting comes as the prime accused, Dr M Kodanda Ram, who has been booked for abetment of suicide, remains absconding. The Supreme Court had recently dismissed his anticipatory bail plea.
Speaking to the media after the meeting, Nithin’s father, Rajan, said the Chief Minister assured the family that he would discuss the matter with Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala and ensure appropriate action.
“We trust the Chief Minister’s assurance. It is believed that Dr Ram is hiding somewhere in Andhra Pradesh. The investigation team has been searching there for quite some time, yet he has not been arrested. We have therefore requested that the probe be handed over to another agency,” Rajan said.
Nithin’s mother, Latha, broke down while speaking to the media. “My son deserves justice. I sent him there to study, not to lose his life,” she said.
Following the meeting, Satheesan said in a social media post that the parents had sought strict action against those responsible for their son’s death. He added that he had assured them of a fair and impartial investigation and reiterated that the government would stand with the family in their fight for justice.
Nithin Raj, 22, a student of Anjarakkandy Dental College in Kannur, died by suicide on April 10 after jumping from a building on the campus. His family alleged that he had been subjected to caste-based harassment by faculty members before his death.
Based on a complaint filed by his father, police registered a case against Dr Kodanda Ram, the head of the department, and two other faculty members under charges of abetment to suicide and provisions of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
While another accused, Dr Sangeetha Nambiar, secured anticipatory bail from a sessions court, Dr Ram’s bail pleas were successively rejected by the sessions court, the Kerala High Court and, most recently, the Supreme Court. He remains on the run.
