A 17-year-old JEE aspirant allegedly took his life by hanging himself in his hostel room, police said on Saturday. The incident marks the second suspected suicide within a span of 48 hours among students attending classes at a coaching hub, and the eighteenth such case in Rajasthan’s Kota in a year.
Bhargav Mishra was discovered hanging from the ceiling fan of his paying guest room in the Mahaveer Nagar area at approximately 8:30 pm on Friday, the police said.
Mishra, a resident of Champaran district in Bihar, arrived here in March this year. He was a Class 12 student enrolled in a coaching institute and was preparing for the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE).
DSP Harshraj Singh confirmed the incident on Saturday and said The boy allegedly hanged himself to death in his room in Mahaveer Nagar-III here sometime around Friday noon.
The incident came to light when Mishra, last seen around 11 am on Friday, did not respond to repeated phone calls from his parents. Concerned, the paying guest caretaker went to his room and discovered that the door was bolted from inside, Singh said.
Upon receiving no response from Mishra despite multiple attempts to contact him, the caretaker promptly informed the police about the situation. The authorities arrived at the location at approximately 8:30 pm and forcibly opened the room, only to discover the young boy hanging from the ceiling fan.
The reason behind the suspected suicide is yet to be determined, according to the DSP. He further said that no suicide note was found in the boy’s room.
The police are actively working to gather additional information about the deceased student, including obtaining his performance records from the coaching institute to assess his academic progress and attendance. The body has been placed in the mortuary of New Medical College Hospital, awaiting post-mortem examination, which will be conducted once the teenager’s family members arrive at the location, the DSP said.
18th Suicide Case in Kota This Year
The incident marks the eighteenth incident of suspected suicide among coaching students preparing for competitive examinations in this region so far this year.
A 17-year-old NEET aspirant, identified as Manjot Chabra from Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, allegedly took his own life by wrapping his face with a plastic bag. His lifeless body was discovered in his hostel room in Vigyan Nagar area on Thursday morning, according to the police.
However, Chabra’s parents have claimed that their son was a victim of murder. They have filed a case against six people, including a classmate of the boy and the hostel owner.
On Sunday, Pushpendra Singh, a student who had come to prepare for NEET few weeks ago, died by suicide by hanging himself in his hostel room at Rajiv Gandhi Nagar. The police did not find any suicide note.
According to reports, Pushpendra’s cousin had gone to the market at the time of the incident. When he returned and found the room gate closed, he called Pushpendra but received no response. Worried, he informed the hostel operator, who broke open the door and found Pushpendra hanging. The police were notified and arrived at the spot.
Pushpendra’s relatives from Jalore reached Kota on Monday morning and the police conducted the postmortem in their presence before handing over the body to them.
Last year, at least 15 cases of suicide by coaching students were reported in this coaching hub.
Over 2 lakh students living in over 25,000 paying guest rooms and 3,500 hostels are currently taking coaching for entrance exams in various coaching institutes here.
(With inputs from PTI)
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