Death in a place of worship - it is perhaps the last place one would think of ending life. The fact that he chose to end his life in a mosque, where he had been going to pray since years, indicates how troubled Mohammed Mohiuddin’s mind was. The 33-year-old research scholar from English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU), who had been staying at the Hazrath Saduddin Sahab mosque since two days, was pleasant and quiet, said those who knew him. “He was always studying. In fact, he was quite confident that he would pass his viva exam easily,” said Hamid Qureshi, who teaches arabic to the children in the mosque. The children too were in quite a shock. Until afternoon, the kids, aged between 6 - 14, could be seen discussing ‘Mohiuddin bhai’s’ death in hushed up tones in a corner. “He used to sleep with us. On Wednesday night, he was awake all night. Usually, someone or the other is awake till late night, and one of us saw him pacing in the mosque at 3 am Thursday,” said Ismail, a 10-year-old, who studies arabic in the mosque.
Like Ismail, there are other children who stay in the mosque. “He promised to take us for a treat after he completed his viva exam. He used to study all day, and would pray quietly,” mentioned another student named Akram (12). Qureshi also corroborated Ismail’s words, stating that Mohiuddin had even given someone Rs 1,000 to spend on the treat. “I think the suicide was spontaneous. Mohiuddin wanted to clear his viva. He used to come and pray at the mosque regularly from the past few years when he was studying in EFLU. While I think it was a sudden decision, others here say that he may have planned it, as he committed it just a few days after returning from home,” explained the caretaker of the mosque, who did not want to named.