IIT-Kharagpur Student Faizan Ahmed Buried Second Time, His Mother Says 'Truth is Emerging'

In a remarkable turn of events, the Amolapatty burial ground in Dibrugarh town of upper Assam became the setting for an extraordinary burial ceremony that is likely to be remembered in history.

By Jitendra Jangid Jun 19, 2023, 13:54 IST

The Amolapatty burial ground in Dibrugarh town of upper Assam, this Sunday stood witness to a unique burial and possibly the only such in recent history. A brilliant student of IIT Kharagpur, Faizan Ahmed was buried here for the second time in eight months and this time his mother expressed that “the truth is emerging.” In the early hours of a rain-drenched Sunday, after Faizan’s mortal remains were brought back from Kolkata following a second post-mortem his final rites were performed for the second time in the presence of the young students’ bereaved family members. Faizan’s mother Rehana Ahmed, for whom it has been a long-drawn legal battle after her son’s sudden demise, arrived with her son’s mortal remains at the Dibrugarh Railway Station at around 11.45 pm on Saturday. From there the body was taken straightaway to the Amolapatty burial ground, located 8 km away, and was buried as per Islamic tradition at around 1.30 am. A two-member team of Bengal police who escorted Faizan’s body to Dibrugarh was also present at the burial ground along with the local police. On the orders of the Calcutta High Court on May 23rd, the body of Faizan Ahmed was exhumed by forensics experts from the Amolapatty Kabarsthan (burial ground) seven months after he was buried. Faizan (23), a resident of Assam’s Tinsukia district was a student of third-year mechanical engineering at IIT-Kharagpur. On October 14, 2022, the partially decomposed body of Faizan Ahmed was found in his hostel room located in the institute. Interestingly Fizan’s body was found completely intact without any further decomposition while it was exhumed after seven months of burial. Many were of the opinion that it was nothing short of a wonder and a young boy’s hope for justice and desire for the truth to be unearthed. Refusing to accept the IIT management’s argument that Faizan committed suicide, his father, Selim Ahmed, moved to the Calcutta high court last year seeking the formation of a special investigation team (SIT) to probe the death. While IIT Kharagpur authorities claimed that Faizan’s death was an act of suicide, his parents claimed that their son was murdered. Dissatisfied with the police investigation, the family moved to the Calcutta High Court on November 1, 2022. They alleged that IIT Kharagpur was trying to fabricate the murder of their son as an act of suicide. On April 25 this year, Justice Rajasekhar Mantha of the Calcutta High Court ordered the exhumation of Faizan’s body for conducting a second post-mortem at the Kolkata Medical College and Hospital to find out the truth behind his death. On May 27, the second post-mortem of Faizan was carried out by Dr.Ajoy Kumar Gupta, a forensic expert appointed by the court. “He is the only son I had sent to Kharagpur. They killed him there, the IIT is too blamed. I don’t have the courage to look at him for the last time. My hopes that one day he shall look after me now lie buried. What else father shall live for” said Selim Ahmed, father of Faizan. The case of unnatural death was registered by the Kharagpur town police station in West Midnapore on October 14, 2022. The second post-mortem indicated that Faizan’s death was possibly due to an injury on the back of his head. In his report, Dr Gupta mentioned that Faizan’s death was due to profuse bleeding causing hemorrhagic shock and combined effect infused over the chest and overhead. “Manner of death of Faizan was ante mortem injuries. Homicidal in nature,” the report said. “The post-mortem report clearly revealed that my son was murdered. The High Court going through all the reports of post-mortem was convinced that it was murder and killed brutally. I was present while the post-mortem was done. I firmly believe that time on the basis of the investigation by the SIT formed by the court, I shall know who killed my son and why. I am one such unfortunate mother who had to move around with my son in the coffin to Kolkata and Dibrugarh” said Rehana Ahmed, mother of Faizan. Based on the second post-mortem report, the Calcutta High Court on June 14 set up an independent investigation team to probe the unnatural death Faizan Ahmed. Justice Rajasekhar Mantha who is hearing the case set up the team after the second post-mortem of the third-year mechanical engineering student showed evidence of homicide. The court directed that charges under Section 302 (murder) of Indian Penal Code (IPC) be added. The court directed the appointment of senior IPS officer K Jayaraman, the Additional Director General (ADG) Headquarters, of West Bengal Police to lead the investigation in the matter. Justice Mantha said that Jayaraman will be assisted by Susanta Dhar, a retired senior officer of the Homicide Division of Kolkata Police. The order further stated that Kaushik Basak, the Officer-in-Charge (OC), Homicide, of West Bengal CID will be the new Investigating Officer (IO) who shall function under the supervision and guidance of Jayaraman. The court also permitted the newly appointed investigating team to conduct a truth serum and narco analysis test on any of the witnesses or persons they deem necessary to throw light on the incident. The decision, according to the court, was in view of the serious omissions in the first post-mortem report and the misdirection of the earlier investigation.

In a remarkable turn of events, the Amolapatty burial ground in Dibrugarh town of upper Assam became the setting for an extraordinary burial ceremony that is likely to be remembered in history. Faizan Ahmed, a brilliant student of IIT Kharagpur, was laid to rest for the second time in eight months, and his mother, filled with a sense of revelation, expressed that "the truth is emerging." This Sunday, amidst heavy rain, Faizan's mortal remains were transported from Kolkata after a second post-mortem, and his final rites were solemnized once again in the presence of his grieving family members.

Rehana Ahmed, Faizan's mother, has endured a protracted legal battle since her son's untimely demise. She arrived at Dibrugarh Railway Station with his mortal remains at approximately 11:45 pm on Saturday. From there, the body was immediately taken to the Amolapatty burial ground, situated 8 km away, and in adherence to Islamic tradition, Faizan was laid to rest around 1:30 am. Local police, accompanied by a two-member team from the Bengal police who had escorted Faizan's body, were present at the burial ground.

The Calcutta High Court had ordered the exhumation of Faizan Ahmed's body on May 23rd, following a request from forensic experts. The burial ground, Amolapatty Kabarsthan, saw the body being exhumed after seven months of interment. Astonishingly, Faizan's body was found completely intact without any signs of further decomposition. This miraculous preservation left many astounded and fueled the hopes for justice and the revelation of the truth harbored by the young man.

Disregarding the IIT management's assertion that Faizan had taken his own life, his father, Selim Ahmed, filed a petition with the Calcutta High Court last year, seeking the formation of a special investigation team (SIT) to probe his son's death. Despite the authorities at IIT Kharagpur maintaining that Faizan's demise was a suicide, his parents insisted that their son had been murdered.

Dissatisfied with the progress of the police investigation, the family approached the Calcutta High Court on November 1, 2022. They accused IIT Kharagpur of attempting to manipulate their son's murder into a suicide. Subsequently, on April 25 of this year, Justice Rajasekhar Mantha of the Calcutta High Court ordered the second post-mortem of Faizan's body at the Kolkata Medical College and Hospital to uncover the truth surrounding his death. Dr. Ajoy Kumar Gupta, a forensic expert appointed by the court, conducted the second post-mortem on May 27. Faizan's father, Selim Ahmed, emotionally expressed, "He is the only son I had sent to Kharagpur. They killed him there, the IIT is too blamed. I don't have the courage to look at him for the last time. My hopes that one day he shall look after me now lie buried. What else father shall live for?"

The case of Faizan Ahmed's unnatural death was registered by the Kharagpur town police station in West Midnapore on October 14, 2022. The second post-mortem indicated that Faizan's death was likely the result of a head injury. Dr. Gupta's report stated that Faizan died from profuse bleeding, leading to hemorrhagic shock, caused by injuries sustained to the chest and head. The report explicitly described Faizan's death as "ante mortem injuries" and declared it to be "homicidal in nature."

IIT-Kharagpur Student Faizan Ahmed Buried Second Time, His Mother Says 'Truth is Emerging'

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