An assistant professor of IIT Guwahati was found hanging in his quarters on Friday evening with the police suspecting it to be a case of suicide, the third such incident to have taken place at the premier institute this year.

Two students have also committed suicide since September.

According to a police officer, a preliminary investigation suggested the 47-year-old assistant professor, identified as Sameer Kamal from the mathematics department of IITG, committed suicide by hanging himself from a ceiling fan.

“He was last seen three-four days ago. He was the silent type, mostly keeping to himself. We (police) had to break open the door of his quarters, locked from the inside, in presence of a magistrate to get his body down. It appears to be a case of suicide,” the police officer told The Telegraph on Saturday.

Kamal joined the institute about 10 years ago and is survived by his mother and brother.

“They have been informed,” the police officer said.

This is the third suspected case of suicide at IITG since September 16 when a 22-yearold student from the institute’s design department was found hanging in his room. He hailed from Kerala.

On October 9, a 20-year-old former IIT Guwahati student, who was asked to “vacate” his hostel room in July-August, was found hanging in one of the hostel buildings.

He was from Andhra Pradesh.

Apart from the three suspected cases of suicide, a PhD student from Odisha was found dead in his hostel bed in January this year.

The IITG issued a two-para statement on Saturday which offered no details about the deceased faculty. The statement said: “The body of a man was found in one of the residences at IIT Guwahati.... It has been identified as a faculty of the institute. The institute is trying to establish contact with the family of the deceased.”

The statement added: “IIT Guwahati expresses its deepest condolences to the family at this time of profound grief. We will cooperate with the police investigation and will also commission an internal investigation on this matter.”

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