Athokpam Tikendra, father of Sanaton said that it was unfortunate that the RIMS authority tried to “distort” facts amidst the agitations by the people demanding justice for the death of Sanaton.
TFM Report
The father of Athokpam Sanaton, a 5th semester student of the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) at the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) who was found hanging at his hostel, on Monday refuted the “claims” made by the media advisor of RIMS recently regarding the death.
Speaking to media persons at the residence of Sanaton at Khurai Thangjam Leikai, Athokpam Tikendra said that it was unfortunate that the RIMS authority tried to “distort” facts amidst the agitations by the people demanding justice for Sanaton.
According to a press release issued by the media advisor on April 3, after hearing the news of the unfortunate incident on March 15, the family members were informed of the incident on that day itself. But Tikendra alleged that there was no official communication from the RIMS authority on that fateful day. The news of the death came from well-wishers after about one and a half hours after Sanaton was pronounced dead, he added.
The press release had also stated that on March 16, RIMS faculty, staff and students held a condolence meeting and after the meeting, a team of RIMS led by Dr Ak Brogen, professor and dean visited the family at around 4.00 pm and conveyed the condolence message and stayed there for nearly one hour. However, Sanaton’s father claimed that a team of RIMS authority led by the medical superintendent visited the family on Monday, 20 days after the death. No one from the RIMS authority visited the family prior to this, he said.
Tikendra further also refuted the claim that some of the family members including the sister of the deceased student and well-wishers met the RIMS director at the institute on March 16. Sanaton’s sister is currently studying M.Phil at the institute. She was informed that the head of her department and the director wanted to meet her. They had apparently told her to arrange a meeting with the family regarding the death. But she had categorically told them that it was not possible without consulting the Joint Action Committee (JAC) formed in connection with the death, Tikendra added.
He further said that on March 27 the well-wishers and family members tried to march towards RIMS to meet with the RIMS director to learn facts about the incident. The protestors were stopped by the police and a delegate was assured to arrange a meeting with the director. But on arriving at the institute they were told that they will be meeting with the medical superintendent instead. The protestors were enraged at such treatment, Tikendra added.
Sanaton’s mother Sanahanbi urged the people, with tears in her eyes, to support the effort to dig out the truth about the death of her son.
Earlier in the day, women from Sanaton’s locality blocked the Khurai Lai-Wangma Road and staged a sit-in in the middle of the road.
The April 3 release by the RIMS media advisor had assured full cooperation in the police investigation and magisterial enquiry to find out the truth of the unfortunate incident. It also appealed to those who love and care for Late Sanaton Athokpam to fully cooperate with the investigation and enquiry so that truth is found out at the earliest in the interest of all.
Sanaton Athokpam of Khurai Thangjam Leikai, Imphal East was found hanging from a ceiling fan in his hostel room (C-5 of hostel number 3 of RIMS) on March 15 at around 1.30 pm. His friends broke the door when he had failed to respond. Both the hands of Sanaton were allegedly found tied behind. Several marks were also allegedly found on the left side of the body.