Tamil Nadu SC/ST commission investigates death of Dalit medical student in Coimbatore
COIMBATORE: The Tamil Nadu State Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes has initiated an investigation into the death of a postgraduate medical student at a private hospital in Coimbatore.
While the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) has taken suo motu cognizance of the case, the state commission conducted an inquiry on Friday based on petitions from several organizations, according to sources.
Sources indicate that K Bhavapoorani (29), from Vagurampatti in Namakkal, belonged to the SC Arunthathiyar community. She was pursuing a postgraduate degree in anesthesiology at PSG Institute of Medical Sciences and Research in Coimbatore city. She was found dead in a restroom at the institute on Sunday morning, with the door latched from the inside.
She was on night duty and was last seen by colleagues around 1.00 am on Sunday. Multiple calls were made to her mobile when she was not seen. She was later found dead in a restroom around 7.00 am. The Peelamedu police stated that a case was registered under Section 194 (suspicious death) of the BNS Act, and further investigation is underway.
SC/ST commission members S Selvakumar and M Pon Dhous held an inquiry with the victim's family members. Government officials, including police officials and the institute's management, have also recorded their statements.
"There were no external injuries on the body as per the initial findings of the post-mortem held on Monday. The body was handed over to the family after the post-mortem. A syringe with a drug was found inside the restroom, which will be examined in a laboratory. The cause of death will be known only after the post-mortem report is released. The victim's family is raising multiple questions, casting doubt on the nature of her death," sources said.