A 20-year-old BTech student died after falling from her university hostel building in Nagadevanahalli, Doddaballapura taluk, on Thursday night, with police investigating the circumstances and her family alleging that inadequate corridor safety measures contributed to the incident.
Varshini V, a native of Andhra Pradesh, was pursuing her third year of computer science and engineering at GITAM University and was staying in the hostel on the campus. According to police, she fell from a sixth-floor corridor at around 8.30pm and died at the spot.
Police said they had examined CCTV footage from the campus and found footage showing Varshini falling from the building. A senior police officer told the Times of India that there was no indication of foul play at this stage. Investigators are also examining her mobile phone and gathering information about reports that she may have been experiencing depression.
Police said no death note had been found. The circumstances surrounding the death remain part of the investigation, and the report of possible mental-health distress has not been independently established in the material available.
Varshini’s family members, who reached the hostel on Friday, filed a complaint against the university management. They alleged that the institution had not taken sufficient measures to prevent students from jumping or accidentally falling from the corridor. The family specifically pointed to the absence of iron grills along the corridor, saying this allowed access to the edge of the sixth-floor structure.
The complaint has led to a case being registered under Section 106, relating to causing death by negligence, at Doddaballapura Rural police station. The registration of the case allows the police to investigate the alleged safety lapse; it does not by itself establish liability against the university management.
The incident places attention on the physical safeguards provided in student hostels, including corridor barriers and other measures intended to prevent falls. In this case, the police investigation and the family’s complaint will determine whether the building’s design, maintenance or management practices played a role in the death.
The university’s response to the family’s allegations was not included in the report. Police are continuing to examine CCTV footage, the student’s phone and other information connected with the incident before determining the next steps in the case.
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