3 min readThiruvananthapuramUpdated: Apr 18, 2026 11:51 AM IST
Three persons from Noida, who are associated with an online loan app, have been arrested by the Kerala police in connection with the death of a Dalit medical student.
Nithin Raj R L (22), who hailed from Uzhamalakkal village in Thiruvananthapuram, died after a fall from a building at the Kannur Dental College campus in the Anjarakandy area of Kannur district on April 10. His death, allegedly after incidents of humiliation over caste, skin colour and his family’s financial background, had taken Kerala by a storm of grief and protest.
Police had also found that Nithin was allegedly being threatened by employees of the loan app over an amount of Rs 13,500 that he had availed for the treatment of his mother, who found livelihood from MGNREGS work. On the day before he took the extreme step, Nithin allegedly received 96 calls or messages from employees of the loan app, threatening to repay the amount. His teacher, Dr Latha, whose number was also accessed by the app, received 26 calls the same day.
The three arrested accused are Rishikesh Tiwari, Prasanth Keval, both from Uttar Pradesh, and Prakash Jay from Haryana. They were arrested in connection with a case registered based on the complaint from Dr Latha.
Police said the accused repeatedly threatened Nithin, who availed of the loan in February, and the teacher from different numbers. While the loan app is not available on the App Store, it has been circulated on social media.
The app charges exorbitant interest, such that the repayment liability grows to Rs 19,000 in a month, police said. Nithin paid back Rs 1,000 on April 6, but the app handlers allegedly kept pestering him with repeated calls and messages.
While availing the loan, the app had also accessed Nithin’s contacts, and he had given Dr Latha as one of the references. When the teacher received repeated calls from the app, she took up the matter with the college principal.
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Last Friday, the principal summoned Nithin to his chamber and allegedly took his phone into custody because Dr Latha wanted to file a complaint with the police’s cyber cell. Ten minutes after emerging from the principal’s chamber, Nithin allegedly jumped off the building of the medical college.
