Another DU student chooses the dark path of suicide

Another student of Dhaka University allegedly killed himself early Monday at his own home in Madhupur upazila of Tangail.

The deceased was Pritom Kumar Singho Akash, a student of the department of ceramics of DU's Fine Arts faculty of 2016-17 session.

One of his friends, quoting family members, told UNB that around 1am on Monday, hearing what sounded like moaning from his room, they went to check on Pritom but the room was locked from inside.

As his condition worsened he eventually told his family that he had gulped down some rat poison, according to the friend who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Later, he was taken to the Upazila general hospital. After receiving primary treatment there, he was referred to Mymensingh Medical college at around 3am, according to his family.  

It was on the way to Mymensingh when he breathed his last.

Pritom's death adds to the alarming trend of suicides spiking alarmingly among tertiary students during the Covid-19 pandemic, as revealed in a recent report by the non-profit organisation Aachol Foundation.

According to Aachol, at least 101 students at the tertiary level died by suicide last year, while the number was 79 in 2020. 

In order to put those numbers in their proper context, compare them with the corresponding numbers from the years prior to the pandemic: just 11 tertiary-level students died by suicide in 2018, and 19 in 2017 (no reliable figure exists for 2019, Aachol said). The steepness of the climb during the Covid years makes it difficult to escape the conclusion that the pandemic did have some effect on these students.

The highest number of suicides were recorded among Dhaka University students, who accounted for nine students while Jagannath University and Shahjalal University of Science and Technology had recorded six suicide cases each, the report added.

Pritom was buried at the graveyard of his village and the reason for his death could not be confirmed by any official sources.

"Being depressed after the marriage of his lover, he committed suicide," one Abdullah Ratul wrote on Pritom's Facebook timeline.

On the other hand, Tanmoy Mondol, another friend, wrote that: "We talked with his family and neighbours. He did not commit suicide for the marriage of his loved one. He was suffering from depression for the last few days."

DU proctor professor AKM Golam Rabbani said, "We contacted Pritom's family members. There might have been love affair related reasons behind this."

The Officer-in-charge of the Madhupur police station said, "His family didn't inform us about the death. We got to know about it after the burial."

Action will be taken If the family members file any complaint, he added.