Two teenage female athletes found dead at SAI hostel in Kerala; police probe circumstances

TWO teenage female athletes residing at a Sports Authority of India (SAI) hostel in Kollam were discovered dead in their room on Thursday, according to police. 

The deceased have been identified as 18-year-old Sandra A, from Kozhikode’s Chaliyam district, and 15-year-old Vyshnavi V, from Muthakkal in the Thiruvananthapuram district.

Police confirmed that Sandra was an athletics trainee in her second year of higher secondary school, while Vyshnavi was a Class 10 student and a kabaddi player. The tragedy was uncovered around 5 am when other hostel residents noticed the pair had failed to attend their scheduled morning practice session.

After several unanswered knocks, hostel staff forced entry into the room and found both girls hanging from ceiling fans, the police stated. Investigators noted that while Vyshnavi was assigned to a different room, she had stayed in Sandra’s room on Wednesday night. Both athletes were last seen by fellow trainees shortly before 12:30 am.

An FIR was filed following a complaint by the SAI centre official. According to the FIR, Vyshnavi was found hanging by a bedsheet from a fan near the door of room 21 on the top floor. Sandra was found in the same room, also hanging from a separate ceiling fan using a bedsheet.

The Kollam East police station has registered a case of unnatural death under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Officials confirmed that post-mortem exams are being conducted and the bodies will be released to the families shortly. Both girls had resided at the facility for two years.

“The reason for committing such an act is yet to be ascertained. We are conducting a probe into the incident,” Kollam City Police Commissioner Kiran Narayanan told PTI.

The Sports Authority of India said that a case has been registered.

“SAI is cooperating in the investigation. Investigation is underway,” the police said.

Police reported that no suicide note was found at the scene. Investigators intend to record statements from trainers, relatives, and other athletes at the hostel. Furthermore, mobile phones belonging to the deceased will be analysed as part of the ongoing inquiry.

Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested a Kerala businessman who had previously accused an agency official of corruption, detaining him on Thursday under anti-money laundering statutes, according to PTI.

Aneesh Babu was taken into custody at the ED’s office in Kochi following an investigation into a money laundering case involving cashew exports. He will likely appear before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court this Friday, said the report.

In May 2025, the Kerala Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) in Ernakulam filed a case against Sekhar Kumar, an Assistant Director at the Kochi ED office, along with several others. The VACB alleged that private intermediaries had approached Babu to “demand” ₹2 crore in exchange for “settling” a money laundering inquiry that the ED had initiated against him in March 2021.

The original ED investigation into Babu, his father, Babu George, and his mother, Anitha Babu, stems from five separate FIRs registered by the Kerala Police Crime Branch and the Kottarakara Police in Kollam.