New twist in Kannur dental student death as loan app harassment angle emerges

Kannur: Cyber Police have registered a case against unidentified online loan app operators following the death of a Kannur Dental College student at Anjarakandy, officials said on Monday.

The case was filed on Sunday night after an assistant professor of the college submitted a complaint.

According to police, Nithin Raj R L, a first-year BDS student, had taken a loan through an online lending app. After he reportedly defaulted on repayment, the app operators began contacting a woman assistant professor linked to the college.

The FIR states that the accused sent threatening messages and MMS content via WhatsApp to the faculty member, pressuring her over repayment. They are also alleged to have attempted to unlawfully withdraw money from her account, officials said.

What happened to Nithin Raj?

Raj (22), a native of Thiruvananthapuram district, was found critically injured near a medical college building after falling from a structure on April 10. He was taken to hospital but later died from his injuries.

His family has alleged that he was mentally harassed by two faculty members, leading to a separate case being registered against Dental Anatomy Department Head M K Ram and Associate Professor K T Sangeetha Nambiar for abetment of suicide, along with provisions under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

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A Special Investigation Team is currently probing the case and is also examining whether the student’s death is linked to alleged threats from loan app operators.

Police have registered the cyber case under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including criminal intimidation (Section 351(2)), extortion (Section 308(3)), and Section 66D of the Information Technology Act (cheating by personation using computer resources).

Investigators said they will analyse Raj’s mobile phone to trace details of the loan app and record statements from the assistant professor who received the alleged threats.

Officials also confirmed that chat records recovered from the student’s phone show he had requested more time to repay the loan. He had reportedly taken a loan of ₹14,000, while the app operator demanded immediate repayment of ₹8,000. His family said he had asked for a short extension due to financial difficulties.