Less than a day after the Kannur City Police cited a loan repayment issue as a probable contributing factor in the death of Nithin Raj, a first-year BDS student found dead at Kannur Dental College in Anjarakandy, his family said the loan had been taken with their knowledge for his mother’s medical treatment. They also accused the hostel warden, Kamal, of subjecting him to mental harassment.

Nithin, 26, a native of Uzhamalackal in Thiruvananthapuram, was found lying on a stone-paved area between the administrative block and the hospital building on the campus at around 1.30 pm on April 10, in a case of suspected suicide. He was rushed to the casualty department but succumbed to his injuries at 3.35 pm. Following his death, the police registered a case of unnatural death under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).

Later, the police booked two of his teachers, Dr M K Ram and K T Sangeetha Nambiar, following allegations of harassment and casteist abuse raised by his family. They have been charged under Section 3(1)(r) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, which deals with intentional insult or intimidation of a member of the SC/ST community in public view, and Section 108 (abetment of suicide) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The action came after audio clips purportedly supporting the allegations surfaced on Sunday.

Nithin's father Rajan on Monday also accused the hostel warden Kamal of adding to the pressure Nithin faced in college.

“They told him he would be shifted downstairs if he failed his exams, but he said he would not fail. The warden then questioned his ability and said he would be moved downstairs as he would certainly fail,” Rajan alleged.

Kannur City Police Commissioner Nidhin Raj said that an analysis of Nithin’s mobile phone call data records (CDR) revealed that he had taken a loan through a mobile application between December and January.

“He had received multiple calls regarding the loan. The lending agency had also obtained the contact number of one of his teachers. When the loan defaulted, the teacher was also contacted. Similar calls were made to the teacher on April 10,” he said, adding that the resulting mental stress could have been a contributing factor.

However, Rajan told the media that the loan had been taken with the family’s knowledge for his mother’s treatment.

“My wife had been undergoing treatment for over a month, and we needed money to meet the medical expenses. That is why he took the loan,” he said.

Rajan said that since he had been spending most of his time at the hospital, he was unable to work, which led to a delay in repayment. However, he added that Nithin could have informed him if the loan had become a problem.

“He could have told me, and I would have repaid it,” he said, adding that whenever Nithin had asked for money earlier, he had transferred it through Google Pay.

Rajan also alleged that the college authorities had never informed the family about issues related to the loan, including instances where a teacher was reportedly contacted by the lending agency.

“They have my phone number. Then why didn’t they call me even once to inform me about it?” he asked.