Death of Raudha Athif

We would like to express our heartfelt condolences to the family of Raudha Athif from the Maldives who was a second year student at the Islami Bank Medical College in Rajshahi. On March 29, Raudha was found dead in her dorm room. The circumstances surrounding her death, followed by the autopsy, had led the police to term the death a suicide, which her parents have contested.

Raudha's parents have pointed towards anomalies which they think refute that she took her own life. Now, the Detective Branch (DB) of the police as well as the Maldivian authorities are part of the investigations. And although evidence has been collected, the parent's claim there is still some discrepancies. Her mother says that even though their daughter went to talk to a doctor at the university's hospital since she was feeling sick, they were not allowed to see the prescriptions. They also claimed that they have been told that Raudha had not gone to the hospital, despite eyewitnesses saying she had.

It is sad that a bright, young mind as Raudha's who wanted to be a doctor and had chosen our country as her place of education had to meet such a tragic end. What could have been a luminous career in medicine has been cut short. All we can do is hope that the investigation by the DB will provide closure for the bereaved parents. What is needed is a thorough investigation to allay their concerns that their daughter was murdered. It is too early, without being aware of all the facts, to take a definitive position. We urge that the authorities take heed of the issues that Raudha's family has raised and after looking into those, disclose their findings.