Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday transferred the investigation into the death of JS Sidharthan to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

A press release issued by the Office of the Chief Minister said that the CM informed the family of Sidharthan JS that the case will be transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation. "Sidharthan's father and relatives met with the Chief Minister today in his office. The police probe is currently underway. All the accused in the case have been arrested through a fair and flawless probe. Still, the family has requested that the case may be transferred to the CBI and a petition was submitted to the Chief Minister," the release noted.

"The Chief Minister has agreed to a CBI probe in the case," T Jayaprakash, Sidharthan's father had said following the meeting.
"A murder case should be filed against the Dean and the Assistant Warden. Suspension is not enough; they should be dismissed from service, and the case should be thoroughly investigated. Since 2019, there have been numerous suicides at the college. All of them should be investigated before allowing the college to operate.

"The son of a gynecologist and a senior student at Nedumangad government hospital is implicated in Sidharthan's death. A student named Akshay also played a role in his death. Akshay's father is a politician and a plantation owner. Akshay should be included in the list of suspects. Akshay is not a witness but a suspect. This is quite evident," said Jayaprakash.

Meanwhile, the Youth Congress workers who were staging hunger strike seeking justice for Siddharthan ended the protest following a request by his father. 

Sidharthan, a second-year Bachelor of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry student at Pookode, was found dead in the college hostel washroom. His parents have claimed that some of his college mates told them that he was beaten to death by some senior students and SFI activists.

The father contended that according to the postmortem report, his son's body had injuries and an empty stomach, indicating that he was brutally beaten up and not given any food. Police had arrested all 18 accused in the case pertaining to Sidharthan.