— By Staff Reporter | May 04, 2015 02:55 am
Mumbai : A 21-year-old youth allegedly committed suicide at 6.45 pm on Saturday evening on the terrace of IIT Powai by consuming an unidentified chemical substance. The deceased, hailing from Haryana, has been identified as Jitesh Sharma who was a third year B-Tech chemical engineering student.
An officer from Powai police station, where an accidental death report has been registered, said that Sharma had been depressed for the past one year. “From the preliminary investigation, we found out that the youth’s performance in academics was not to his satisfaction and he was depressed for over a year. Also, the father confirmed that his son was going through counseling sessions for the same,” said the officer. Sharma’s body has been sent for a post-mortem examination to Rajawadi hospital, and samples of the chemical substance have also been sent for testing to the Forensic Science Laboratory at Kalina.
“Our investigation is underway and we are waiting for the post-mortem report and testing samples. Also, we found out from his friends that he used to stay aloof and never discussed his problems with anyone,” the officer further added.
The youth is survived by his father, mother and a younger brother. His friends said that, “he appeared normal on Saturday morning and they didn’t notice anything wrong. Late evening, around 6.45 pm, they found him lying on the floor of the terrace and foam was coming out of his mouth.”
Sharma was then rushed to a local hospital in IIT Powai where he was declared dead before admission. A spokesperson for IIT Powai said, “His parents reached Mumbai on Sunday morning and the cause of his death is still unknown. It will be clear only after the post-mortem. We will hand over his body to the parents after the post-mortem.”
