Overview

• Harsh Kumar Pandey, a mechanical engineering PhD researcher, was found hanging in his locked room at B.R. Ambedkar Hall after his parents could not reach him by phone.
• Police broke open the door, recovered the body, and sent it for forensic examination, calling it a prima facie case of suicide pending the autopsy report.
• Coverage differs on the count for 2025, with some reports calling this the sixth campus death and others the fifth suspected suicide at IIT Kharagpur.
• Earlier cases this year included students found hanging in January, April, May and July, and a separate July death from choking on a pill.
• The institute says it has introduced stress-management and counselling initiatives for students as investigations proceed.