Jalpaiguri Juvenile Home: 16-yr-old found hanging

Jalpaiguri: Once again, Jalpaiguri Juvenile Korak Home has come under scrutiny following the sudden death of a resident. The 16-year-old boy was found hanging in the home early on Tuesday morning. Police have registered a case of suicide and initiated an investigation into the matter.

The teenager was living with his mother after his parents separated when he was a kid. Due to financial difficulties, his mother, Shukla Barman, took up a job sewing sacks in a company in Gujarat.

Before leaving, she had entrusted her son to the Jalpaiguri Government Korak Home through the Cooch Behar Child Welfare Committee, with the intention that he could focus on his Madhyamik exams. Talking over the telephone, she stated: “I left him there thinking about his future, never imagining I would lose him like this. I planned to bring him with me after his secondary exams.” According to police sources, it could be a case of suicide prima facie. The boy was found hanging with a towel.

The police retrieved his body after being informed by the Korak Home authorities and conducted a post-mortem examination. While the home is equipped with multiple CCTV cameras, none were positioned in that specific area. Initial investigations suggest that the boy seized an opportunity to end his life while others were asleep.

Prior to this, the home had faced scrutiny following the suicide of another resident teenager named Labu Islam on December 15, 2022.