Missing IIT-B student's family seeks help from Rajasthan government

Harsh Sharma was suffering from depression

Almost three months after Harsh Sharma, 20, went missing from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, there is no trace of him. Disappointed, his family which hails from Rajasthan, has approached its government to intervene and have a dialogue with the Maharashtra state government to speed up the investigation.

Sharma, who was studying in the third year of the Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech) Dual Degree course, was allegedly suffering from depression. He went missing from the campus on November 22, 2019, leaving behind his mobile phone, identity card and wallet. He was last seen in the narrow alleys of Vikhroli and Kanjurmarg in CCTV footage the same day. "But there is no information of him after that. Police have gone through his internet browser history and other details. They have spoken to his friends and classmates and the institute, too, is providing all possible help. But, unfortunately, the investigation hasn't led anywhere," said Dinesh Sharma, Harsh's father, a businessman.

'Wrote to Rajasthan government'

He added, "We have approached the home department of the Rajasthan government. Following our request, the secretary has written to the home department of the Maharashtra government, requesting them to speed up the investigation and also sought any developments in the process. We hope to receive some positive news after this. But, since the last week of January, when this letter was sent to the Maharashtra government, there has been no development. A new team of police reopened the investigation. But, that investigation, too, seems to have reached a dead-end."

'Reaching out to public'

Sharma and his family members are taking turns to come to Mumbai to stay in touch with the police. He has also gone to all local political party offices in Mumbai, especially in the eastern suburbs, seeking the help of local activists. "Our objective is to make people aware at large, especially party workers, about Harsh, so if anybody has any update they would be able to help us. And, he has not taken his mobile phone, it is becoming very difficult to trace him. So reaching out to the public is what we thought would be of help," said Sharma.

Sachin Madne, head of the Shiv Sena's Powai shakha, said, "We have created a WhatsApp message regarding Harsh along with his photo, and forwarded it to all our groups of party members around the eastern suburbs including Vikhroli, Kanjurmarg, Bhandup, etc. But, there is no news yet."

DCP Ankit Goyal said, "Our team is continuously working on this investigation. There is no lead yet after the CCTV footage."

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