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Hundreds of protesters blocked the Jammu-Pathankot National Highway in Samba district for two hours on Monday after a college student from Jammu and Kashmir was found dead in Punjab’s Ludhiana.
The victim, Vaishali, 20, a resident of Madkoli village of Sumb block, went missing on Saturday while returning from Government Degree College in Samba. Her body was found under mysterious circumstances near the railway tracks in Ludhiana on Sunday, officials said.
The protesters, including the victim’s parents, placed her body on the highway and demanded a CBI probe in the matter. Her father, Rakesh Kumar, a labourer, who works at the Samba bus stand, said, “Her disappearance and subsequent death indicate foul play. We want justice, which can only be delivered through a CBI probe.”
The senior superintendent of police-rank official said, “When the victim did not return home from college on Saturday, her family lodged a missing report at the Samba police station around 9 pm.”
“We immediately initiated action, and found that her mobile phone had switched off at around 9 pm near Pathankot. It was switched on at 2.30 am in Ludhiana by the Punjab Police, who informed us that the body of the woman had been found near the railway tracks,” he said
“The victim had bought a railways ticket from Kathua Railway station for Haridwar. Whether she jumped off or fell off the train remains to be probed,” he said, adding that they were checking her mobile phone.
“So far, we do not suspect she was abducted,” said the SSP. The protesters dispersed peacefully after senior police and civil administration officers pacified them.
Deputy magistrate Anuradha Gupta and SSP had visited the spot and assured the family of a fair and detailed probe. Later, the victim’s body was cremated at her native village.
