Research student found brutally murdered, throat slashed, head bludgeoned with a rock

PUNE: A fellow pursuing his Ph.D at the National Chemical Laboratory (NCL) in Pune was found murdered on Saturday. Police recovered the body of the victim, identified as 30-year-old Sudarshan aka Balya Baburao Pandit from the Sus village in Pune.

Morning walkers found Sudarshan's body along a hilly area in Sus village on Saturday morning and alerted the police. A team of Pune Police rushed to the spot and saw that the victim's throat had been slashed and his head bludgeoned with a rock in an attempt to conceal his identity.

An I-card found in his pant pocket enabled the police to identify Sudarshan and inform his family members. Police officials also said Sudarshan's body was found without any clothes from the waist up.

According to investigators, Sudarshan had enrolled at the Pune-based NCL about a year-and-a-half back to attain a Ph.D in Chemistry. He lived alone in Pune's Sutarwadi area and was unmarried.

Located in Pune, NCL is a constituent laboratory of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). Established in 1950, CSIR-NCL is internationally known for its excellence in scientific research in chemistry and chemical engineering.

The motive behind the murder is yet to be ascertained, Inspector Dada Gaikwad of the Chattushringi police Crime Branch told India Today.

A similar murder was reported in July 2017 when a 37-year-old man's body was found in a park in New Delhi's Narela. Police had revealed at the time that the victim's throat had been slit with a sharp weapon and his face caved in with a heavy rock so as to conceal his identity.