Missing IIT Hyderabad student dies by suicide in Visakhapatnam

HYDERABAD: Dhanavath Karthik the missing B tech second-year Mechanical engineering student of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Hyderabad allegedly died by suicide in Visakhapatnam the port city in Andhra Pradesh.

The 21-year-old Karthik, a native of Miryalaguda was reported missing from the IIT campus in Kandi on July 17. Police suspect that he was upset over the backlogs and took the drastic decision. However, Karthik’s parents said that their son was bright and good in his studies.

The Sangareddy police, who issued a lookout notice on July 19, 2023, found Karthik in the CCTV footage obtained from Lingampally railway station. According to the police, Karthik left Hyderabad on July 17 and reached Visakhapatnam by train.

Meanwhile, worried about their son not responding to their phone calls, Karthik’s parents reached the IIT Hyderabad campus. While the search by the parents and friends for Karthik continued the warden of the hostel filed a police complaint on July 19, with the Sangareddy police.

Finally, Sangareddy police traced Karthik’s mobile signals at the RK Beach in Visakhapatnam and sought the help of the Andhra Pradesh police in tracing the student's whereabouts. Police suspect that Karthik would have drowned in the sea around July 19. His body was recovered on July 20 with the help of fishermen. Karthik’s parents reached Visakhapatnam and identified the body.