 |
| Family members of Minhal Abid at Mitanghat in Patna City on Wednesday. Picture by Sachin |
An 18-year-old college student was found murdered near Mitanghat in Patna City area on Wednesday.
Minhal Abid was missing since Tuesday evening. His family contacted his friends and relatives but could not find him. Abid’s body was recovered from the banks of the Ganga on Wednesday morning.
Khajekalan police station house officer (SHO) Prem Sagar said Abid, a first-year Intermediate student of Oriental College, went missing on Tuesday, but his relatives did not inform the police.
“The police came to know only after his body had been found,” said the Khajekalan police station house officer.
The victim’s mother, Abada Begum, told the police that Abid had left home around 9pm saying he would return soon.
“When he didn’t return till midnight, I suspected foul play and informed neighbours, who looked for him all night. I got the sad news this morning,” said an inconsolable Abada Begum.
Preliminary investigations showed the youth’s throat was slit with a sharp-edged weapon. The body was sent to Nalanda Medical College and Hospital for post-mortem. The mother reportedly told the police the family had no enmity with anyone.
“An FIR was lodged against unidentified persons on the basis of her statement,” the SHO said. Abid stayed with his widowed mother.
“Investigations are on to ascertain the reasons behind the crime,” an officer of Khajekalan police station said. He didn’t rule out questioning of Abid’s friends.
“Efforts are on to gather information about his friends, those who were in constant touch with him,” he said, adding that interrogation of his friends might provide a clue in the case.
The murder led to protests in the area. Residents blocked the Ashok Rajpath near Khajekalan.
Senior police officers broke the blockade and promised to bring the culprits to book at the earliest.