Puri: In a shocking incident, a 27-year-old engineering student from Rourkela was found dead under mysterious circumstances in a hotel room in Puri on Thursday. The deceased, identified as Chinmaya Samal, was a B.Tech student of Gandhi Engineering College, Tangi, Cuttack.

According to reports, Chinmaya had travelled to Bhubaneswar with three of his college friends to visit the Bali Jatra fair in the Balianta area. Later, they reportedly went to Puri for a short trip and checked into Room No. 302 at Radhakrishna Nivas, located in Khuntiasahi area of the pilgrim town.

Also read: Two tourists from West Bengal found hanging in Puri hotel room.

Police said the hotel staff discovered Chinmaya’s body inside the room in the afternoon and informed the Puri Town Police, who then reached the spot and recovered the body for post-mortem. His three friends, who had accompanied him, are reportedly missing and have gone absconding since the incident.

Chinmaya’s father, Shubhendu Samal, alleged foul play in his son’s death. He claimed that his son might have been drugged and murdered, as his mobile phone has not been found.

“Chinmaya had last spoken to me around 7:30 pm on Wednesday. Later, his phone was switched off. I feared something was wrong,” Shubhendu said.

Police have initiated an investigation to trace Chinmaya’s missing friends and determine the exact cause of death. “The cause will be clear only after receiving the autopsy report,” a police officer said.