Death of two students shocks Bengaluru's IISc

Two students at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) died on Tuesday. While one killed himself, the other collapsed when playing football.

Sadashivanagar police have taken up two cases of unnatural death.

Randhir Kumar, 36, a fifth-year PhD student of nanoscience, was found hanging in his hostel room on the first floor of M Block on the campus around 6 pm.

Preliminary investigations revealed that Kumar, a Bihar native, was found hanging in his room by a classmate, who went to check on him since Kumar did not turn up for class for two days.

The friend found Kumar’s room locked and did not get a response after repeated knocking. He also called Kumar’s phone which remained unanswered. He then alerted the security staff, who broke the glass panes of Kumar’s room and found him hanging inside. They called the police.

Police did not find a death note. Kumar’s parents have been informed of his death. His body was handed over to the family after the post-mortem. The institute management, Kumar’s friends and parents suspect that he had taken his life due to depression, though it is yet to be established by an investigation.

Death in the playground

Rahul Pratap Singh, 30, from Uttar Pradesh, was pursuing MTech at the Department of Mechanical Engineering. He collapsed will playing in the gymkhana ground around 8 pm. Friends rushed him to the clinic inside the campus, from where he was taken to MS Ramaiah Hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival.

His parents were informed, and his body was handed to them after the post-mortem on Wednesday.

IISc statement

“We are extremely saddened to report the deaths of two students on the campus of IISc on Tuesday,” the IISc said in a statement. “We express our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the students. One of the students, pursuing his PhD in the Centre for Nano Science and Engineering, died by suicide. The other student, pursuing his MTech from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, collapsed and was found unresponsive while playing football. We strongly urge IISc community members to reach out to and seek help from the facilities and wellness resources by counselling," it added.