Missing Rajasthan medical student found dead in Russia; family seeks repatriation, transparent probe
Alwar: A 22-year-old medical student identified as Ajit Singh Chaudhary from Rajasthan’s Alwar district, who had been missing in Russia since the last three weeks, was found dead near a dam in Ufa city on Thursday. According to his family he was pursuing an MBBS degree at Bashkir State Medical University since last year.
On October 19, Ajit went missing after he left his hostel around 11 a.m. to buy milk and told his friends he would return shortly. He did not come back. In the days that followed, authorities recovered his clothes, phone, and shoes near the White River. After 19 days of search operations, his body was located near a dam on the same river.
The Indian Embassy in Moscow informed the family and district representatives in Alwar about the discovery. Fellow students were called in to identify the body. Officials informed that the post-mortem would be conducted by a medical board in Russia. The remains would be sent to India thereafter. The repatriation process is expected to take two to three days with the help of the Indian Embassy and Russian authorities.
Relatives said Ajit's family had sold nearly three bighas of land to finance his medical education abroad. “We sent him with so many hopes. Now we are only waiting for him to return,” a family member said.
Residents, student groups, and community members gathered at the Alwar Jat Hostel and expressed their distress over the delayed response to Ajit’s disappearance by authorities. They appealed for a thorough investigation into the circumstances of his death.
According to a report by The Tribune, Congress leader Jitendra Singh Alwar expressed condolences and called the incident “suspicious,” urging External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to ensure the repatriation is completed quickly and the family receives support. “This matter must be investigated seriously. The family should not be made to go from office to office,” he said on X.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Odisha: Normalcy returns to violence-hit Malkangiri; internet services fully restored
Malkangiri (PTI): Normalcy returned to Odisha’s Malkangiri district on Monday, nearly a week after around 200 villages were damaged in violent clashes in a village, with the district administration fully restoring internet services, a senior official said.
Additional District Magistrate Bedabar Pradhan said internet services, suspended across the district on December 8 to curb the spread of rumours and misinformation following the clashes, were restored after the situation improved.
The suspension had been extended in phases till 12 noon on Monday.
The administration also withdrew prohibitory orders imposed under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita within a 10-km radius of MV-26 village, where arson incidents were reported on December 7 and December 8.
Though the violence was confined to two villages, tension had gripped the entire district, as the incident took the form of a clash between local tribals and Bengali settlers following the recovery of a headless body of a woman on December 4, officials said.
ALSO READ: Why remove Mahatma Gandhi's name, asks Priyanka on move to replace MGNREGA
The violence broke out after residents of Rakhelguda village allegedly set ablaze several houses belonging to Bengali residents, forcing hundreds to flee. The headless body of Lake Podiami (51), a woman from the Koya tribe, was recovered from the banks of the Poteru river on December 4, while her head was found six days later at a location about 15 km away.
Officials said the district administration held several rounds of discussions with representatives of the tribal and Bengali communities, following which both sides agreed to maintain peace.
Relief and rehabilitation work has since been launched at MV-26 village, with preliminary assessment pegging property damage at around Rs 3.8 crore.
A two-member ministerial team headed by Deputy Chief Minister K V Singh Deo visited the affected village, interacted with officials and locals, and submitted a report to the chief minister.
So far, 18 people have been arrested in connection with the violence, the officials said, adding that despite the withdrawal of prohibitory orders and restoration of internet services, security forces, including BSF and CRPF personnel, continue to be deployed to prevent any untoward incident.
On Sunday, Nabarangpur MP Balabhadra Majhi visited MV-26 and neighbouring Rakhelguda villages, and held discussions with members of both communities as part of efforts to rebuild confidence and restore peace.
More than two lakh Bengali-speaking Bangladeshis were rehabilitated by the Centre in Malkangiri and Nabarangpur districts in 1968, and they currently reside in 124 villages of Malkangiri.
