The police has concluded in its investigation that the 21-year-old IIT-Bombay student found dead on the terrace of a campus hostel recently, committed suicide. It has ruled out foul play after statements of his family members, batch mates, friends and some of the institute’s faculty members did not indicate any conspiracy. All claims converged on the fact that the deceased suffered from depression and was feeling academic pressure.
Jitesh Sharma, from Rohtak in Haryana, who was a third-year chemical engineering student, was found dead on the terrace of hostel 15-B around 7 pm on May 2 on the campus premises along with a bottle of ‘sodium azide’ besides his body, which has now been sent for forensic and chemical analysis at the State Forensic Sciences Laboratory at Kalina. A suicide note written by him read, “I should not have been into this field. I did a mistake by passing JE exam. I have now learnt to be away from my parents (sic).”
While the Powai police is awaiting the forensic analysis’ findings, statements of people close to Jitesh said he had been depressed and was unhappy over his choice of course. “His parents also said that he had already been diagnosed with depression and had been undergoing psychiatric counselling for the last one year. His course mates stated he had become a recluse after failing to clear some of his exams. The counsellor at the institute had also been treating him for depression and corroborated the same to us,” said a police officer.
