RIMS Medico mysterious death case: 6 Student Bodies, activists observe 24-hour strike in Manipur

Even after one month of the death of the medico, the magisterial inquiry has not been completed yet. Under such circumstances, 6 student bodies and several social activists joined hands to form the 'Justice for Sanaton Athokpam' platform which has been demanding justice for the medico.

The medico was found hanging in his hostel room on March 15th. The student was identified as a 22-year-old who was a fifth-semester MBBS student of the institute. As per a media report by East Mojo, on the day of the incident, his friends started calling him after noticing that he was confined in his room for a long time. Subsequently, they broke into his room and found him hanging from the ceiling. He was rushed to RIMS casualty but he was declared brought dead.

However, the parents of the medico, the student organizations, and the social activists all are suspecting foul play and they have refused to believe it to be a suicide case as they alleged that the body had several torture marks and his hands were also mysteriously tied in his back. The protesting medicos also pointed out that police have refused to register an FIR in connection with the incident and though Chief Minister N. Biren had assured that the probe would be completed within a month, even after more than 47 days, the magisterial inquiry is still underway.

Demanding immediate action to identify and book the offenders, six student bodies called for a 24 hour-long shutdown in Manipur which began from 6 p.m. on April 26th. The president of The Regional Institute of Medical Sciences Students' Union (RIMSSU), Bishal Roy told The Hindu, "Some sections have been trying to vitiate the academic atmosphere in this national-level medical college. Despite the fact that the RIMSSU had issued a clarification on April 22 after meeting some students' bodies, the vilification campaign is continuing".

Pointing out lack of action on the part of the interrogating officials of RIMS, the activists and the protesting medicos demanded their suspension and also sought examination of the call records of the deceased medico's mobile phone. They also alleged that despite approaching the authorities, RIMS director Ahanthem Santa and other ranking officials, including the hostel warden have not issued any statement yet and are maintaining absolute secrecy, reports the daily.

According to the daily, previously some instances of violence and mysterious death have been recorded in the RIMS campus; for instance, in an incident, a student was shot and wounded while in another a visiting student was found dead inside a hostel room. Moreover, even the director and the faculty members had been kidnapped by rebels.