Loyola student commits suicide

Chennai: A first-year economics student of Loyola College committed suicide by hanging himself in his room in the hostel located on the college premises in Nungambakkam on Fri­day.

The police said Ajith Kumar, a native of Ram­asamy Naicken Patti in Theni, left no suicide note, but hinted that the 18-year-old youth found it difficult to handle his studies.

Around 1 pm on Friday, other inmates of the hostel heard some noise from room No. 40, in which Ajith stayed. They rushed to his room and broke open the door which was locked from inside.

“By the time his friends loosened the rope around his neck, he was dead. His body has been sent to Kilpauk medical college for post-mortem,” the police said.

“We were told he was having trouble coping with his studies. His frie­nds also indicated that he was consuming alcohol on Thursday night. We are also probing if he had any kind of depression linked to other things, including love failure,” the police said.

The police and college officials said Ajith had failed in five papers in the first semester. “He was also not regular to classes in the second semester and has very poor attendence percentage. But there was no black mark against him,” said a top college official.
The police noted that he did not go home for Pon­gal holidays, but stayed at his uncle’s house at Vela­chery. But he did not show any signs of depression, they added. “We too are still clueless about why he took such an ext­reme step,” said a relative of Ajith.

Ajith’s friends who had come to KMC where his body was kept refused to talk further seeking privacy. “The boy was staying alone in the room as his roomate had gone home for Pongal holidays.

He was last seen on Thursday night by his hostelmates and he had fastened the doors by placing a chair on it. He had used a nylon rope to hang himself from the ceiling,” said the police Police sources said his friends told them that he had consumed liquor Thursday night and was found depressed for the last few days.