Kota NEET aspirant commits suicide by self-asphyxiation, 17th death this year

KOTA: A 17-year-old NEET aspirant allegedly committed suicide by wrapping his face with a plastic bag in Rajasthan’s Kota, police said on Thursday. Manjot Chabra (17), a native of Uttar Pradesh’s Rampur, was found dead inside his hostel room in Vigyan Nagar police station area, they said. Police said Chabra took his life on intervening nights of Wednesday and Thursday.

However, the incident came to light in the morning when his parents' calls went unattended and they alerted the hostel caretaker who broke open the door and found the boy's body. The ceiling fan in Chabra’s room was equipped with an “anti-suicide device”. To end his life, the teenage boy covered his head and face with a plastic bag and also tied a cloth around it, Circle Officer (Vigyan Nagar) Dharmveer Singh said.

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This is the 17th case of suspected suicide by a coaching student in Kota this year. In 2022, at least 15 cases of suicide by coaching students were registered in Kota. A suicide note was found pasted on the room's wall wherein the boy held no one responsible for his extreme step, Singh said. The victim was a class 12 topper and had come to Kota along with three schoolmates from his town in April. The four friends lived in the same hostel in separate rooms, he said. According to Chabra's friends, the boy was a brilliant student and had a fun-loving nature. He had scored 93 per cent marks in class 12 and was also doing well in routine tests at the coaching institute, the CO said.

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They alleged that when they discussed about the coaching students committing suicide in Kota, Chabra would often say that he would be the next to commit suicide but they took it as a joke, he said. The officer said that the victim’s family has been informed and the post-mortem will be conducted after the arrival of his parents. Over 2 lakh students are currently taking coaching for entrance exams in various coaching institutes in the city.