Wayanad: The death of Sidharthan J S, a second-year student of the Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (KVASU) following ragging and torture, has snowballed into a major political controversy after the CPM erected a board seeking justice for him in front of the his house on Friday.

On the board, the CPM claimed Sidharthan was an SFI activist at the university and demanded the arrest of all accused in the ragging case.

Questioning the CPM's move, Sidharthan's relatives said that vet varsity students' alleged killers have installed a board seeking justice for him. Asserting that Sidharthan was not an SFI activist, they asked the CPM to remove the board immediately.

Sidharthan was found hanging inside his hostel bathroom on February 18, a few days after some SFI activists and leaders stripped him naked publicly and beat him up.

Another suspect in custody

The police apprehended Asif Khan, a native of Varkala, on Friday in connection with Sidharthan's death. Additionally, the arrests of three students already in custody—SFI unit secretary Amal Ihsan, college union president K Arun, and key accused K Akhil—have been registered. Ten students have been arrested so far, while eight remain at large.

Police assert that there is substantial evidence linking these students to Sidharthan's brutal torture. Eight more students are yet to be apprehended, with suspicions that they may have fled to neighbouring states. Authorities are monitoring the mobile phones of the accused's relatives, hoping to facilitate their surrender.