SHILLONG, May 16: The Confederation of Meghalaya Social Organisations (CoMSO) and the Garo Students’ Union have both sought an independent judicial inquiry into the alleged suicide of Abiel Salchiana Ch Marak, a nursing student at the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), Imphal.
CoMSO chairman Roy Kupar Synrem argued that the sudden and unexplained death raises critical legal and moral questions, suggesting that the young woman may have been subject to mental harassment, academic pressure, discriminatory treatment, and possibly institutional lapses in providing psychological and emotional support.
He argued that without a transparent, impartial, and high-level inquiry, the incident may be relegated to mere statistics and would be a gross miscarriage of justice.
Synrem also suggested that an independent judicial commission of inquiry headed by a sitting or retired High Court judge with adequate legal, forensic, and psychological expertise should be formed to determine the real causes and contributing factors behind the student’s untimely death. This would ensure protection for witnesses, students, and whistleblowers, including confidentiality clauses, legal representation, and assurance against institutional retaliation.
GSU president Tengsak G Momin called for a judicial inquiry into the alleged suicide of the Garo community, demanding witness protection for students, staff, or whistleblowers who are ready to testify in the case. The GSU sought full cooperation from the RIMS administration with the investigation and suspended those complicit, pending inquiry.
The Meghalaya Pradesh Youth Congress also supported the GSU in the demand for an independent, judicial inquiry into the matter so that the truth behind the death of the 21-year-old could be brought to light.
