Assam CM requests CBI probe into death of IIT Kharagpur student Faizan Ahmed

Guwahati, June 18: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has written a letter to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, urging her to initiate a CBI investigation into the death of Faizan Ahmed, an IIT Kharagpur student from Tinsukia, Assam.

Faizan, a third-year mechanical engineering student, was found dead in his hostel room on October 14, 2022. His parents, suspecting foul play, demanded an investigation.

Two years later, a recent forensic report indicates that the 23-year-old was allegedly murdered, revealing a gunshot wound on the upper left side of his neck and a stab wound on the right. Faizan’s body was exhumed last year in Assam for a second autopsy by order of the Calcutta High Court.

Following these developments, the Assam CM has requested the intervention of his West Bengal counterpart to facilitate a CBI inquiry into the case.

This would ensure "justice to the deceased and closure to the grief stricken parents", he said.

"Kindly hand over the case to the CBI for a transparent and fair investigation of the crime," he added.

Sarma had earlier written to Banerjee in October 2022, requesting a thorough investigation into the unnatural death of the student.

Ahmed’s death was claimed by the IIT-Kharagpur authorities to be a case of suicide. However, his parents claimed that they had observed injury marks on his body and moved the Calcutta High Court in May 2023, seeking the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the death.

The court then ordered the exhumation of his remains and a second post-mortem examination to "bring out the truth behind his death".