Malda, May 24: The mutilated body of a first-year student of an engineering college was found on the tracks near the Rathbari railway crossing here late last night.

Sheikh Junaet Ahmed from Ekbalpur in Calcutta had taken admission to the electrical department at the Institute of Management and Professional Studies in August last year. Till December, he used to stay at the hostel, but later he shifted to a rented place at Regent Park with a few friends.

Worried that Junaet had not returned home even after 10 last night, his roommates reportedly went out to look for him, when a neighbour told them that someone had been run over by a train at the Rathbari crossing. The roommates immediately rushed to the spot, where they found Junaet’s body, a source said.

As some of the friends stood guard, the rest went to the Englishbazar police station. From there, police contacted the GRP, following which the personnel arrived at the spot around 1am. The body was sent for post-mortem to the district hospital at 3am, police said.

According to the police, the youth was killed between 10pm and 11pm, when he was returning to the rented place after having dinner outside. “At that moment, two trains were passing each other at the railway crossing. We suspect that the youth got scared. Trying to avoid one train, he jumped on the other track, only to be run over by the second train. His body was severed into three pieces and his friends could identify him only by the gold bangle on his right wrist,” an investigating officer said.

GRP inspector-in-charge Swapan Dasgupta refused to say anything till the post-mortem report came. “Until the report comes, I cannot say whether Junaet tried to kill himself or it was just an accident,” Dasgupta said.

As soon as word reached him in Calcutta, Abdul Rashid, Junaet’s uncle, and a few relatives drove down to Malda. After the body was handed over to Rashid this afternoon, they headed for Calcutta. His father had died earlier.

Principal of the institute Bishnupada Sarkar said: “He was a really meritorious student. He was supposed to take the practical exams only a few days later and we were hoping that he would score well.”