IIT student dies at psychiatric centre
By IANSWednesday, July 7, 2010
LUCKNOW - A student of the premier Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur (IIT-K), who was being treated for mental illness, died Wednesday at a private medical centre in Kanpur, an official said.
Rakesh Kumar Thakur, 22, who was pursuing his M.Tech mechanical engineering from IIT-K, died at the Mahendru Psychiatric Centre in Sarvodaya Nagar.
An official statement about Thakur’s death was issued Wednesday late evening by the IIT-K administration.
“He (Thakur) died in the hospital…He was suffering from some psychiatric disorder,” IIT-K Director Sanjay Govind Dhande told IANS over telephone from Kanpur, some 80 km from Lucknow.
Even as the IIT-K administration ruled out any suicide angle behind the incident, some students of the institute have demanded a thorough enquiry into the case. They alleged that Thakur’s body was secretly handed over to his family.
Thakur was a native of Darbhanga district in Bihar.
Even after repeated attempts, S. Mahendru, who according to IIT-K officials was treating Thakur, could not be contacted as he did not respond to the phone calls.
According to sources, Thakur was admitted to the psychiatric centre on Sunday.
atul katiyar