Kalyan student’s death sparks probe into alleged train assault over language

A 19-year-old college student from Kalyan died by suicide after allegedly facing severe mental distress. His father claimed the stress stemmed from an incident where the student was beaten by a group of people on a train during an argument over his use of Hindi instead of Marathi. The Kolsewadi police have filed an accidental death report (ADR) and recorded the statement of the victim’s father, Jitendra Khaire, who alleged that four to five individuals assaulted his son over the language dispute, a senior officer confirmed. Police said the deceased, Arnav Khaire, was enrolled in the first year of a BSc program at a college in Mulund and lived in Kalyan with his parents and younger brother. The incident reportedly took place on November 18 while he was commuting to college by local train. Due to heavy crowding, Khaire allegedly spoke in Hindi, “Don’t push, you’re putting too much weight on me.” This triggered a confrontation with four to five men who, according to the complaint, berated him for not speaking Marathi. Khaire reportedly told them that he was Marathi too and still they thrashed him inside the train. A police officer involved in the investigation said they are working with the Kalyan railway police and reviewing CCTV footage to identify those involved in the scuffle. “We will examine every detail that could have contributed to the victim’s extreme decision,” the officer added. According to the statement given by the father, the men grew more aggressive, allegedly taunting him with remarks like, “Are you ashamed to speak Marathi?” The verbal spat is believed to have escalated into a physical attack. Senior Police Inspector Hemant Gurao from Kalyan Police Station said, “We cannot disclose details of the investigation at this stage. All angles are being examined; the cause cannot be attributed to just one factor based on the father’s claims. We are yet to obtain all the CCTV footage and need to verify whether the incident actually occurred and whether the boy was assaulted.” He said that the police still in the process of gathering the details. “It is a challenging task because trains are extremely crowded. A team has been formed, and we are taking assistance from the railway police as well. Unfortunately, no one is willing to come forward and give a statement saying they witnessed the incident.” According to the father’s statement, the boy returned home visibly disturbed and later was found dead. Investigators have seized his phone to examine messages or chats that might shed light on what happened. Mumbai BJP President Ameet Satam called the incident a poison sowed by the Thackeray brothers, and the MNS. He tweeted on X tagging Uddhav and Raj Thackeray and wrote, “What are the consequences of the poison you are sowing in society? The Marathi people will teach a lesson to your duplicitous and hypocritical policies Remember...!” He then posted a photo of the boy with a message, “A Marathi boy was severely beaten up for speaking a single Hindi sentence in a local train and then went home and committed suicide. The beatings being inflicted on North Indians by Thackerays have now reached their peak. Thackeray’s child will learn French, German, but if one speaks a single sentence in Hindi, they die.” (Those in distress, please reach out to these 24x7 helplines: KIRAN 1800-599-0019; Aasra: 022 27546669)