Say lack of forensic inputs hindering investigations
MARGAO
Even as Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has called for thorough investigations into student deaths at the BITS Pilani Goa campus, it has emerged that earlier probes by the South Goa district administration and the police are still incomplete due to delays in receiving Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) reports.
It remains unclear whether the Chief Minister has asked for investigations into all six student deaths reported so far, or only for faster inquiries into the September 2025 death of Rishi Nair and the latest case involving a female student, reported to be a suicide.
South Goa District Collector Egna Cleetus had earlier said she could not complete the probe into Nair’s death as the FSL report was still awaited. Taking a similar stand, South Goa Superintendent of Police Tikam Singh Verma said the police investigation also remains incomplete due to the absence of forensic reports.
Speaking to the media on Wednesday, the SP said investigations into student deaths at BITS Pilani are pending because reports from the Forensic Science Laboratory have not yet been received.
This means the police probe into Rishi Nair’s death, reported in September last year, remains inconclusive even after several months.
The issue gained importance after Chief Minister Sawant said earlier in the day that he had sought detailed reports from both the district Collector and the police. He said a conclusion on the student deaths would be reached only after receiving the FSL reports, which would help determine the exact cause of death.
The SP’s comments came after the media sought updates on the case, especially after the post-mortem report in Nair’s death confirmed the presence of drugs in his system. Earlier, the SP had assured that the police would trace the source of the drugs based on the autopsy findings.
