Kanpur (UP), February 14 A 28-year-old junior technician at the Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur (IIT-K) committed suicide on Saturday inside the campus accommodation, allegedly after disconnecting her phone from her fiancé.
The deceased has been identified as Anju Kumari, who is from Jadugoda in Jharkhand, and had been living here for the past three years, according to sources.
According to police, Anju was speaking to her fiancé, Pankaj, on the phone on Saturday when an argument reportedly ensued.
During the call, she allegedly told him that she would end her life before disconnecting, according to sources.
Concerned, the fiancé contacted a friend who lives on campus and asked him to check on her. Since the friend was unavailable at the time, his brother rushed to Anju's residence but found the door locked from the inside.
After repeated knocks and unanswered calls, the hostel warden and police were alerted. The door was forced open, and Anju was found hanging from a ceiling fan.
She was taken to the campus hospital, where doctors pronounced her dead, the police said.
Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) Kapil Deo Singh said that a personal diary containing nearly 350 pages was recovered from the room, in which she had made detailed personal entries.
One entry, written shortly before her death, reportedly mentions that she was deeply hurt after being scolded during a phone conversation, he said.
The police also learned that Anju's marriage had been arranged with Pankaj, an employee in the power department in Odisha, and the couple was expected to get married soon.
During the investigation, police also learned that Anju's brother had committed suicide about a year ago, and she had reportedly struggled with depression following the incident.
However, family members told police that she had appeared emotionally stable in recent months and had not expressed any distress in recent conversations.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) SM Qasim Abidi said, "Prima facie, mental stress linked to personal and family circumstances appears to be a factor. However, a detailed investigation is underway."
The body has been sent for post-mortem examination, and her family members are on their way to Kanpur, the police said.
Abidi said that the police are examining all angles, including call records and the contents of the diary, to establish the sequence of events leading to the death.