In a letter addressed to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Rahul Gandhi, the former Congress chief and Member of Parliament from Wayanad, has urged for a CBI investigation into the demise of a veterinary student named Sidharthan.
The unfortunate incident occurred when Sidharthan, a student at the Kerala University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, was discovered hanging inside the bathroom of his college hostel on February 18. After this event, law enforcement authorities initiated legal proceedings, resulting in the apprehension of at least seven individuals under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Expressing concern over what he perceived as a concerted effort to conceal the truth, Gandhi highlighted what he regarded as the state authorities' involvement in a deliberate attempt to obfuscate the facts. He emphasized the imperative for the state government to uphold impartiality in its investigative endeavors.
Gandhi remarked on the sequence of events leading to the arrests, asserting that their timing, seemingly prompted by widespread public outcry, has cast doubt on the credibility of the investigation. Moreover, he raised questions regarding the authenticity of the police remand report.
Furthermore, Gandhi directed criticism towards the Student Federation of India (SFI), the student wing affiliated with the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)), in connection with the case. He lamented the tragic loss of life and condemned what he described as a pervasive culture of campus violence in Kerala. Gandhi attributed this phenomenon to what he deemed as orchestrated efforts to suppress dissenting voices, resulting in certain student organizations adopting violent tactics.
