Physicist lived with mom’s body for 3 days, tried to burn it at home

KOLKATA: The discovery of the decomposed and half-burnt body of 82-year-old Reba Gupta, a retired professor of social sciences at a Bhowanipore college, at her Chetla apartment on Friday sent shock waves through her upper-middle class neighbourhood. But more were to unfold. When neighbours, suspicious about a burning smell and stench coming from the flat, knocked on the flat, Reba’s son, Sanjib Shankar Gupta (52), the only other person at home, vehemently denied that anything was amiss. But when police arrived, it was found the body had been set on fire and later, a post-mortem confirmed she died 72 to 96 hours earlier.


Police confirmed Reba died of heart attack. “The post-mortem states she died at least 72 to 96 hours ago,” said an officer. A forensic team has recovered kerosene, some chemicals, a few chemistry and medical books, from the flat. “We will have to find out whether Sanjib made a failed attempt at preserving his mother’s body,” said an officer.

A bright student from a south Kolkata reputable school who went on to get a PhD from the US and then, taught at Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) in Mohali, Sanjib was led away by the police for interrogation around 10.30pm. The cops claimed he seemed not only deep into depression but also of the view that no one cared for his knowledge. “He has done his post-doctorate in physics and claims to have studied at IIT. We need to talk to psychiatrists to verify his version. We will shift him to Pavlov or a similar facility,” said an officer.

“Around 8.30pm on Friday, Bipasa Apartment residents called the Chetla police station. Sanjib claimed a snake bit his mother about three days ago, and that he tried to treat her at home but she died about three days ago. He tried to burn her body on Friday evening. He has been depressed since his separation from his wife. Prima facie, we have not found any foul play,” said DC (south) Meeraz Khalid.

Kabita Banerjee, who stayed on the first floor, right above the Guptas, recalled she got the smell of something decaying and something burning around 4pm. “She went to enquire but Sanjib told her Reba was visiting her sister. The two locked rooms and two locked bedrooms though made Kabita suspicious. When some of us tried to enter Sanjib’s home around 6pm, he opened the door but kept the collapsible gate shut. Still, we convinced him to let us in. Inside, we could see two legs (Reba’s) on her bedroom’s floor. Sarees and other clothes were burning,” said another neighbour, Rabindranath Panda, a former CGM of BSNL, the one to alert the police.

The son of cardiologist S K Gupta, Sanjib had left for the US after his HS exams. He returned to the country about 15 years ago and took up the job at IISER. He returned to Kolkata six years ago, claimed neighbours, and shortly, separated from his wife. But a change in his behaviour became apparent about two-and-a-half years ago, as he turned introvert and short-tempered. “He misbehaved with the night guard and the caretaker. Every cook or maid would leave the job at their place within weeks,” said S K Ghosh, another neighbour.

A study last year has shown that PhD and master’s students across the world displayed depression and anxiety six times more than others. “He seems to suffer from an undetected serious mental illness. But we need tests for validation,” said psychiatrist J Ram. “The ordeal of studying and finishing can be extreme,” said Sanchari Sengupta, counsellor.