Araria: A 17-year-old intermediate student was found fatally injured in a maize field in Bihar’s Araria district on Thursday, sparking public outrage and a protest outside the Forbesganj police station. The victim, Mantu Kumar Mandal, a resident of Pottery Ward no. 2 and a student at Forbesganj College, had also been supporting his family financially by offering private tuition.
According to family members, Mantu had returned from his morning tuition session when he received a phone call and left home around 10am. When he failed to return by evening, the family grew anxious. Hours later, he was discovered with multiple injuries just half a kilometre from his house. He was rushed first to the local sub-divisional hospital and then transferred to a private facility in Nepal, where he succumbed to his injuries late at night.
On Friday morning, the grieving family and local residents carried the body to Forbesganj police station, demanding swift justice and a thorough investigation.
Upendra Mandal, the victim’s elder uncle, alleged that one of Mantu’s friends may have lured him away and assaulted him. “He was a bright boy, helping the family by giving tuitions. We believe someone close to him betrayed him,” he said.
Police officials have begun an inquiry. SDPO Mukesh Kumar Saha, who visited the scene, confirmed that the matter is being taken seriously. “We’ve seized his mobile phone and are examining call records. The postmortem will help determine the exact cause of death,” he said.
