After days of protests, the police on Tuesday filed a murder case against two students who have been named as accused in the death of Manipuri student Richard Loitam. However, police officials said they would be arrested only after the forensic report was submitted.
Cases have been filed against Syed Afzal Ali from Chhattisgarh and Vishal Bannerjee from West Bengal under Section 302 (murder) and Section 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Indian Penal Code.
According to the Madanayakahalli police, where the case has been registered, the two students of Acharya NRV School of Architecture were involved in a scuffle with Richard, a second-year student of architecture in the college, on April 17. During the fight, Richard suffered serious injuries. He was found dead in his hostel room the next day.
“We still await the forensic report to ascertain the actual cause of death. Since Richard sustained injuries in an accident two days prior to his death, the report will confirm if he succumbed to these injuries or because of the injuries sustained during the fight. Only after receiving the report can we arrest the students,” said a police official. The official said Syed and Vishal would continue to stay in the hostel. After the death, the police alleged that Richard died from of injuries sustained in the accident. This sparked off protests in Bangalore, New Delhi and Manipur.
