Kendrapara: In a shocking incident, a Plus II Science (second year) student of Duhuria–based Tagore Plus II Science Residential College on the outskirts of Kendrapara township committed suicide by hanging inside his hostel room after the principal reportedly accused him of stealing a mobile phone.
According to sub-inspector of Sadar police station SN Senapati, deceased Ananta Narayan Parida was the only son of Dillip kumar Parida, a resident of Keredagada under Rajnagar police limits.
According to police, Ananta was attending a class when the principal Babaji Charan Moharana asked him to come to his office where he accused the student of stealing a mobile phone.
Though Ananta claimed innocence, he was blamed by the college authority. This pushed Ananta into depression which ultimately drove him to take the extreme step.
Some students alleged though they urged the principal to call an auto-rickshaw to take Ananta to the district headquarters hospital for treatment, Moharana did not pay any heed to their pleas.
This resulted in unrest on the campus with students ransacking the premises, said Kendrapara SDPO Kedarnath Sahu.
Sadar police rushed to the spot, seized the body and detained Moharana.
Meanwhile, the father of the deceased student, Dillip Kumar Parida, lodged an FIR against the principal and the staff.
Sadar police registered a case under Sections 302,34 of IPC and started an investigation.
The body was recovered in the presence of SDM of Kendrapara, Kanhu Charan Dhir, and executive magistrate, Saraoj Kanta Nayak. Sadar police later sent the body for autopsy.
Armed police were deployed at the post-mortem room and the district headquarters hospital as tension continued to prevail among the students.
Policemen were also deployed at the college, the SDPO. The post-mortem was conducted after sunset with arrangement of lights keeping in mind the law and order situation, said collector Reghu G.