Howrah, Aug 5: A 24-year-old woman died mysteriously during a poolside Friendship Day party at a posh club in Howrah on Sunday night, triggering suspicion of a drug overdose. Suvanjeeta Saren died in front of 500-odd guests and staff but no one could say for sure how it happened.
The party was on in full swing when Suvanjeeta was suddenly seen struggling in a shallow pool. A bouncer dived in to save her and a friend gave her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation but she died on the way to hospital. Strips of prescription sedatives were found in her pocket, say police.
Suvanjeeta was married to Samrat Saren but was staying in a hostel. Her roommate Priyanka Bhattacharya had reportedly invited her to the party at Lakeland Country Club, Domjur, and they were accompanied by two youths named Abhishek Singh and Rohit Tripathi.
Police say Suvanjeeta was accustomed to the "fast life" and died because of an overdose of drug and alcohol but her family members don't agree. Her husband said he will seek a full investigation. "I got a call from Suvanjeeta's brother at 7.30pm that she had drowned and had been taken to SSKM Hospital. Since she stayed in a hostel to pursue her studies I had no idea about her activities. I don't know who she had gone with and what happened there, so I shall wait for the post-mortem report. Once it comes I shall decide my next course of action," Samrat said. When asked if he would file an FIR, Samrat said: "Definitely. I will go to any extent to find the truth". Police are investigating it as a case of unnatural death.
The 'Viva La Friendship' revelry was organized at Lakeland Country Club by event management group Mellifluous Entertainment. The party was buzzing at 7pm when one of the bouncers spotted Suvanjeeta struggling for life in the pool. He pulled her out. Priyanka, who says she was at the food counter then, rushed back and tried to blow air into Suvanjeeta's lungs. Suvanjeeta was taken to West Bank Hospital in Howrah and then to SSKM where she was declared dead on arrival.
Singh denied having any kind of association with Suvanjeeta. "I had seen her at two or three parties earlier but I hardly spoke to her. I knew Priyanka and the four of us went to Lakeland Country Club together. After that I went to the booking counter as the event was organized by my friends. I accompanied her in the ambulance to West Bank and then to SSKM," Singh said. Police questioned the trio and allowed them to go. "We are waiting for the autopsy report. Once it comes, we might call them again," said additional SP-rural Indra Chakraborty.
"We recovered a strip of Nitrazepam (commonly referred as N-10) and a strip of Diazepam from her. The autopsy will tell us if she had taken these drugs. Since it was a private party, there was no CCTV coverage and this is a problem," an investigating officer said. Priyanka, in her statement to police, has claimed that Suvanjeeta had a habit of taking drugs. "When I was going to the food counter at 7pm I found her loitering by the side of the pool in a drowsy condition. I told her not to go near the pool. Suddenly I heard people shouting and rushed to the poolside to find her lying unconscious. I took her to the changing room and tried to blow air in her lungs but nothing worked," said Priyanka. She works with a private company. Manager of the club Nur Alam said, "There was only four feet of water in the pool and it is surprising that a five-foot-tall woman drowned in such a shallow pool".
Suvanjeeta, who married in January 2011, shifted to a hostel in Sreerampore, Garia, six months ago. "She was studying BCA under Ignou and moved to a hostel as her classes were at St Andrew's College," said Samrat, an education extension officer of the government posted in Swarupnagar block of North 24-Parganas.
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