In a suspected case of murder on campus, a 22-year-old second-year BA student of Hansraj College in Delhi University was found dead under mysterious circumstances inside his hostel room. The visually-challenged student was found hanging from the ceiling fan around 8.15pm on Tuesday.

What has led the police to suspect that Mukesh Kumar, a Hindi honours student, was murdered is that fact that his hands were tied behind his back. "We have lodged a murder case. We believe this to be the job of an insider who knew exactly where Mukesh stayed in the hostel," said DCP (north) Sagarpreet Hooda. 

Hooda said Mukesh came from a poor family in Agra district of UP. "It is too early to arrive at a conclusion about the case. A crime team has been sent to the spot to investigate. We are questioning his hostel mates. His parents have been informed and they are on their way to Delhi," the DCP said. 

Security at the Hansraj College hostel is considered the strictest on north campus, with only ID card-holders allowed entry. 

Karnal Singh, joint commissioner, northern range, told TOI that murder was a distinct possibility. "We have sent the body for post-mortem. But we can confirm that there has been an attempt to pass off a murder as a suicide. Both the hands of the deceased were tied indicating foul play. We are yet to retrieve any suicide note. Moreover, a stool was found inches below Mukesh's legs. If he had indeed hanged himself, he would have kicked the stool away," said Singh. 

Meanwhile, an investigating officer told TOI that the the rope used for the hanging was much longer than needed. "The aim probably was to use the rope to pull the body up. His white shirt and black trousers were unscratched. All these makes the suicide theory very unlikely," said the officer. 

According to police sources, the body was recovered from the student's own room on the first floor of the hostel. 

Talking to Times City, a hostel resident said they had no inkling that the student was ever suffering from depression. "Blind students are alloted single rooms. This room was located close to the main gate of the hostel and is easily visible from outside. The room area is well lit and one of the most accessible portions of the hostel where residents often stroll at night while taking study breaks. It is therefore shocking that a case of homicide can be reported from this area," said the student. He added that it was another blind student -- a close friend of the deceased -- who informed the college authorities of the incident after he found no response from Mukesh as he entered his room. "It was the college authorities who informed the police," he added.

 

 

 

Hours after the TOI report on university basketball teams being threatened at gunpoint at the Banaras Hindu University was published, DU vice-chancellor Deepak Pental asked the Delhi University Sports Council director, Sudarshan Pathank to file a report on the incident. 

"I haven't personally read the report but I have asked our sports-incharge Mrs Pathak to file a report on the incident. From what I've heard from the players, it is condemnable. We will be writing to BHU. We will definitely take strict action," Pental told TOI on Tuesday. 

TOI brought to light the mob law prevalent at BHU during the All India Inter University Basketball tournament earlier this month. The DU team among others has alleged that it was forced to forfeit its inter-university semifinal at gunpoint in Banaras because the organizers were keen on two local teams making it to the final. 

"Intimidation of any kind - academic, social, on the field, on the street - is inexcusable. You can't play with others' lives at gunpoint just like this," said Pental. 

On Tuesday, DU basketball team captain Harish Dahiya said the players will be filing an official complaint within the following week so that DU authorities could go ahead with the procedure.

 

 

 

It is a news which shall be an important notification for all class XII students desirous of a seat in the premier university of the country - the Delhi University (DU), as it mulls to start its admission process as early as in May and pack its paraphernalia before August.

With the semester system being injected into the academic schedule from this year for the undergraduates, the admission committee of the university will decide the admission dates in its meeting, which is to be held by February end, sources said.

The admission process in the university generally starts in June after the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) declares the Board results and ends by September.

According to the university sources, a concrete decision on the admission dates is still pending although the admission process and sale of the forms may start as early as May.

This revelation means that the CBSE results would not be a barrier for the university to kick start its process, which is expected to begin a week or so before the declaration of the results.

The dean of the student's welfare S.K. Vij said that, "We cannot be too sure, but if the semester system comes into place then the admissions for this academic year (2010-2011) will have to be started early in May. Now, it is for the admission committee to decide whether the process will start before the declaration of the board results or after."

With the new admission modus-operandi, it is expected that the admission process will be completed by July 31, 2010, which will allow the first semester of the academic year to begin from August. 

The form submission affair is also expected to be of a shorter duration. Where the varsity allotted 15 days to students for filling and submission, the serpentine queues are expected to be much longer with the duration cut short to 10 days.

The sale of the forms is expected to begin in May and their submission in June.

"Curtailing the period of submission of forms, its sale is expected to start early and the students will get ample time for filling it up. This also means that the cut-off list is expected to be declared early for the admissions to take place. These changes are the result of the introduction of the semester system where the colleges now have to follow the semester calendar - which will be fixed for the university," said Vij.

 

 

 

With Delhi University (DU) advancing the academic session this year from July 19 following the introduction of semester system, many aspirants may miss the admission bus. Students from other states are likely to be worst hit as state boards are known to delay results. 

As reported by The Times of India on Thursday, the admission window will be compressed by almost a month from this year. 

This means that the sale and submission dates of forms would also be advanced. "Many state boards simply don't send the result CDs on time. This puts their students at a disadvantage. Many state boards don't even declare their results by admission time," said an admission committee member of Delhi University. 

Generally, the admission process starts post CBSE results and continues till September, but this year the admission process would be completed by July 31, whereas the submission of forms will be over by June 10. Therefore, things are expected to be even tough for these students from different parts of the country, with the compressed and advanced dates for admission. 

According to Delhi University authorities, the university would plan its admission dates as per the schedule of the national boards and would leave it to the state boards to decide if they would like to declare the results early to help their students. 

Vice-chancellor Deepak Pental said: "It's sad that each year so many students miss out on an opportunity to join Delhi University because of clash of dates. But one should not expect Delhi University to wait till all the results are declared and all the CDs reach us. It is the responsibility of the respective state boards to help their students. We would move on as per our semester schedule and CBSE results."