PU students protest over medical aspirant’s death, seek CBI probe

Patna: Female students of Patna University on Friday took out a protest march demanding justice for a NEET aspirant who died during treatment after allegedly consuming sleeping pills at a private hostel in the city on Jan 11. The post-mortem report confirmed injury marks and sexual assault, contradicting the initial police claim that there was no evidence of foul play.Earlier in the day, family members of the victim met Bihar DGP Vinay Kumar. After the meeting, the family alleged that the police were forcing them to accept the death as a suicide and deny the allegation of rape. A public interest litigation was filed in the Patna High Court seeking a court-monitored investigation into the case.Female students took out the ‘Beti Bachao Nyay March’ from Magadh Mahila College to Kargil Chowk in Patna, where they staged a demonstration.The students said, “Samrat Choudhary, give security to daughters. Rope in CBI to probe the NEET student's death.”The victim’s mother also met Bihar DGP Vinay Kumar on Friday and alleged that the police were trying to suppress the case. She claimed that the police had accepted bribes from the accused and were not taking action against them. The family demanded a CBI probe, stating that they had lost confidence in the state police.The student’s brother said, “During the meeting with the DGP, the officials in the SIT told mother to accept that she committed suicide and she was not raped.”The deceased’s mother said, “No one is able to get justice for my daughter. Everyone received money. We are not able to give. DSPs, SPs, all are sold out.”After the meeting with the DGP, the victim’s family was called to the deputy chief minister’s residence, but the family did not reach there.Deputy chief minister and home minister Samrat Choudhary summoned DGP Vinay Kumar and chief secretary Pratyaya Amrit to review the investigation. The special investigation team (SIT) was directed to expedite the probe, and the DNA profile of the accused will be matched with the DNA found on the victim’s clothes. After the meeting, the DGP and senior superintendent of police left the deputy chief minister’s residence shortly.Deputy chief minister and home minister Samrat Choudhary again summoned DGP Vinay Kumar and chief secretary Pratyaya Amrit to review the investigation, reiterating directions to speed up the probe and ensure DNA matching of the accused with samples recovered from the victim’s clothes.The SIT has so far collected DNA samples from 22 people, including the hostel owner and staff members. The forensic report revealed traces of human sperm on the victim’s undergarments, and DNA profiling is currently underway. The SIT questioned several suspects, including hostel owner Manish Ranjan, and is working to identify the main accused.