Kannur BDS student death: Court to hear bail plea of Dr Ram, Sangeetha Nambiar today

Kannur: The Thalassery Additional Sessions Court IV in Kannur will consider the anticipatory bail plea of Dr M K Ram and K T Sangeetha Nambiar in connection with the death of a first-year BDS student, Nithin Raj, at Kannur Dental College, Anjarakandy.

Ram, formerly Head of the Department of Oral Pathology, was removed from his position after being named in the case. Sangeetha Nambiar is an Associate Professor in the same department. Both were booked under Section 108 (abetment of suicide) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 3(1)(r) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act for allegedly insulting or intimidating a member of the SC/ST community in public.

The deceased, a 22-year-old from Thiruvananthapuram, was allegedly harassed over his caste and complexion by the faculty. He was found injured on the college campus on April 10 and later succumbed to his injuries. Nithin Raj’s father, Rajan, and his brother-in-law, Ashok, have been impleaded in the petition opposing the bail plea. The court will hear Rajan before pronouncing the verdict.

The accused had earlier approached the Thalassery court seeking interim protection from arrest, which was denied. In their plea, Ram and Nambiar denied any involvement in the student’s death. Ram claimed that Nithin faced threats from a loan application, which may have contributed to his death, and stated that he belonged to a lower caste, challenging the applicability of the SC/ST Act. Both accused are currently absconding.
Meanwhile, the college management has ruled out any allegations of caste bias and said that the loan app-related issues led to Nithin's suicide.

The investigative team is giving primary attention to the loan app’s connection to the case. Police have arrested three individuals from Uttar Pradesh—Rishikesh Tiwari (32), Prasanth Gheval (28), and Prakash Jai (54)—in connection with alleged fraud linked to the app ‘Insta Pay,’ operated by ‘Instant Funds.’ According to police, the app sanctioned a ₹15,000 loan to Nithin at a 36% interest rate, in violation of state laws. On April 9, a day before his death, the accused allegedly pressured him to repay the loan through threats and harassment.

The loan app suspects have been charged under Section 308 (extortion), Section 13 (molestation of debtors for loan recovery) of the Kerala Money-Lenders Act, and relevant provisions of the Kerala Prohibition of Charging Exorbitant Interest Act, including Sections 9(1)(a) and 9(2), which address harassment leading to suicide. Police are analysing call records and continuing their investigation into both the loan app and allegations against the faculty.