IISER-K in Mohanpur in an official statement issued on Saturday said the researcher, who allegedly committed suicide, or any of his friends had never reported any problem to the authorities.
On April 4, Subhadip Roy, a final-year research scholar of the integrated PhD programme, was found dead inside the physics laboratory.
Security staff broke open door to find the body along with a suicide note that blamed his guide, professor Chiranjib Mitra, for his death. Two days later, his mother Ranjana filed a police complaint against Mitra, accusing him of abetting the suicide.
In a statement issued on behalf of the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research-Kolkata, head of physical science department Ayan Banerjee said there was a system in place to report any issue with progress in research. “However, in the case of Mr Roy, no such issues were brought up formally or informally by either the student or the supervisor or any of Mr Roy’s close friends,” it says.
The statement adds that the institute monitors the research status of students through the Research Pro-gress Committee.
“...he (Subhadip) was planning on submitting his thesis this summer. While his work, like anyone else’s, was impacted by the pandemic and laboratory closures over the past two years, there was no other significant red flag that was officially reported to the committee or the head of the department.”
Reacting to the statement, Ranjana said: “It appears that the head of the department is trying to protect the accused professor.”
A research scholar said the statement was an “eyewash. “There is no one with whom we can share the problems without fear of disclosure.”
Puja art event to thank Unesco
Over 50 Puja theme-makers will draw on aspects of the festival at an event on Sunday as thanksgiving to the Unesco for inscribing Durga Puja in Calcutta on its Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
Organised by the Forum for Durgotsab, the umbrella body of Puja organisers, the live painting exhibition will be held at ICCR. “We will compile the canvases and send it to Unesco’s Delhi office,” said Saswata Bose, forum general secretary.
“We had planned this in January but had to delay it due to the Covid third wave. The theme of the show is Kathamo theke Carnval,” said Partha Ghosh of Shibmandir.
Sudeshna Banerjee
