Will start our fight from today, say JU girl’s parents after shraddh ceremony
Times of India | 15 September 2025
Kolkata: Our fight for justice begins tomorrow, the shocked parents of Jadavpur University's third-year English student Anamika Mondal said on Sunday after completing the shraddh ceremony of their only daughter at their Lalit Gupta Street home in Nimta, North Dum Dum.
Her mother, Meenakshi, broke down while recalling their last conversation. "At 9.04 pm on Thursday, I had spoken to her on her cellphone for the last time. She sent me videos of the cultural programme at my WhatsApp thrice from 7.30 pm to 9 pm. At 9:30 pm she said she would take the Metro home. But after that, I couldn't reach her. At 11 pm, one of her friends called her father to say she had fallen into the pond. Later, we learned her death certificate had been issued at 10.20 pm itself.
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Holding back tears, Meenakshi alleged negligence and conspiracy. "There is definitely a plot behind this. The loose security arrangements and indifference of the guards on Jadavpur University campus are also responsible for my daughter's death."
Locals said that Meenakshi, who suffered a brain stroke two years ago, has been unwell since. The sudden loss of her daughter has left her physically and emotionally devastated.
Neighbours described Anamika — affectionately called ‘Mistu' — as a bright, soft-spoken student who was immensely talented in painting and music. They are unwilling to accept her death as an accident. On Sunday, the neighbourhood wore a deserted look, with hardly anyone seen outside her house.
"It was heartbreaking to see helpless parents perform shraddh of their only daughter. None of us had the courage to console them," said Uday Narayan Chatterjee, a neighbour. "We do not believe she died due to intoxication. We want a proper probe," he added. Arnab recalled Anamika's dream of setting up a small textbook library for underprivileged students.
Her body was found in the pond on the campus on Thursday night during a cultural event. Cops' preliminary findings suggested her death happened due to drowning.