Police crack down on loan app mafia after Nithin Raj's death; Uttar Pradesh and Haryana natives remanded

KANNUR: Three operators of an instant "payday" loan app have been remanded in custody following the death of Nithin Raj, a first-year BDS student at Ancharakandi Dental College. The accused—Rishikesh Tiwari (32) and Prashant Khewal (28) from Uttar Pradesh, and Prakash Jai (54) from Haryana—were remanded by the Kannur Judicial First Class Magistrate Court.

In a daring operation, the Kannur City Cyber Crime Police tracked the suspects to Noida, Uttar Pradesh, where they were apprehended. The investigation was triggered by a complaint from one of Nithin’s teachers.

The police revealed that the loan mafia group had aggressively pressured Nithin to immediately pay over ₹8,000. Investigators recovered chat logs where Nithin pleaded with the operators, explaining his financial struggles.

The situation escalated when the loan gang sent threatening messages directly to Nithin’s teacher, prompting a formal report to the college principal. Following this complaint, Nithin was summoned to the principal’s office where his mobile phone was confiscated by the administration. Tragically, shortly after leaving the office and losing access to his device, Nithin jumped to his death from the college building.

Parallel investigations

A Special Investigation Team (SIT) is now pursuing two distinct lines of inquiry:

1. Extortion and Harassment: Investigating the criminal threats made by the online loan app operators.
2. Institutional Conduct: Investigating allegations of abuse Nithin may have faced from college staff. Specifically, Dr. N. Ram and Dr. Sangeetha Nambiar are under investigation regarding their conduct prior to the student's death.