Body of a 16-year-old IIT JEE aspirant, who was missing since February 11, was recovered from the Chambal valley in Rajasthan, police said Monday. This marks the fifth such student death this year.
Rachit Sondhiya, belonging to Madhya Pradesh, was studying in Rajasthan's Kota and was last seen entering the forest area near Garadiya Mahadev temple in a security camera footage, an NDTV report mentioned.
He left his hostel on the pretext of an exam.
A search operation led by the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) sniffer dogs and drones yielded no results until Monday evening, when the boy's body was spotted in an isolated and inaccessible spot of the Chambal valley, the report further said.
The police suspect the student could have jumped from the hill into the valley.
Rachit Sondhiya's parents had circulated his posters, seeking help from the public to help find their son.
BTech Student Hangs Self
In another case, a BTech student who was receiving treatment for depression for the last three years allegedly hanged himself in his house in Ambedkar Nagar in Kota, police said on Monday.
The victim was identified as Rohit Mathur (23) who was pursuing a BTech degree from Jalandhar in Punjab and living with his family in Kota.
According to police, the student called his father – an engineer posted in Alwar – about his intention to die by suicide on Sunday, following which the latter asked neighbours to check on his son.
Police said the matter came to light in the evening after the father reached their house. The 23-year-old was receiving treatment for depression for last three years and had attempted suicide in the past, news agency PTI quoted Rajaram, Sub Inspector at Kunhari police station, as saying.
Police handed over the body to family members after the post-mortem on Monday morning and lodged a case under Section 174 of CrPC for further investigation.
