"Feel Like Failure": Missing Delhi University Student's Family Finds A Note
In a shocking development amid the search for Delhi University student Sneha Debnath, who has been missing for a week now, her family has found a letter from the 19-year-old's room.
The letter, written in Sneha's handwriting, says she had decided to "end my life" by jumping from the Signature Bridge. The letter adds, "I just feel like a failure and burden and it was getting unbearable to live like this." The letter adds that there is "no foul play" and that it was "my decision."
Sneha Debnath, a student of Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, is from Tripura and moved to Delhi for higher studies. On July 7, she went to drop a friend at the Sarai Rohilla railway station. She has been missing since. Extensive searches have been conducted to locate her, but to no avail. The family has flagged dysfunctional CCTV footage on the Signature Bridge across the Yamuna river. The bridge connects Wazirabad in north Delhi to the northeastern parts of the national capital.
Sneha's family members are desperately looking for her and have reached out to authorities for help in finding her. Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha's office has taken note of the incident and directed the state police to join the search for the 19-year-old.
Sneha Debnath is the daughter of an Army veteran, Subedar Major (Honorary Lieutenant) Pritish Debnath (retired), who is currently battling kidney failure and is undergoing dialysis.
In a statement, the family has said Sneha told her mother on July 7 that she was going to drop her friend at Saral Rohilla Railway Station for a 6.45 am train. "Her mother's last contact with her was at 5.56 am. When we called again at 8.45 am, her phone was found switched off. We later learned that her friend had not met Sneha that morning. Upon contacting the cab driver, we were horrified to learn that, instead of dropping her at (the) railway station, he had dropped her at Signature Bridge, a known critical spot where not a single CCTV camera is functional, creating a huge blind spot," the family has said.
The statement added that the National Disaster Response Force scanned the area around Sneha's last known location. "A 7-kilometre radius search was conducted by the NDRF on 9th July based on Crime Branch's request, yet no trace of Sneha has been found. She had carried no belongings, only her phone. Sneha has not withdrawn any cash for 4 months and her small remaining balance has remained unchanged," it said.
"What is most heartbreaking is that we still have no answers. A First information Report (FIR) was filed more than 48 hours after Sneha went missing. We firmly believe that had the CCTV cameras on and around Signature Bridge been functional, we might have known by now what happened to our daughter," the family has said.
This is not just about Sneha, but about the safety and dignity of every young woman in this city. "A 19-year-old college student vanishes from the national capital, and over 96 hours later, we are still in the dark. We appeal to the public, the media, and the authorities to not let Sneha become just another missing person's statistic," said the statement issued yesterday.
"She is our daughter, and she deserves to be found. If anyone has any information, no matter how small, please come forward," it added.
The Tripura Chief Minister's Office has taken note of the incident. "The report of Miss Sneha Debnath, a resident of Sabroom, who has reportedly gone missing in New Delhi, has come to the notice of the Chief Minister's Office. Following this, necessary instructions have been promptly issued to the police to take immediate and appropriate action," it said in a post on X.
Members of Sneha Debnath's family, including her ailing father and mother, have posted videos on social media and sought help from the public and the authorities to share any information about her.
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