CASE FILE
BIDISHA CHATTERJEE
Case File: "The Nalanda Manuscript Trail"
Location: Nalanda University, Bihar
Case Type: Murder (Possible link to missing ancient artifact)
Lead Investigator: You
Date Opened: July 12, 2025
Case Status: Active Investigation
CASE SUMMARY
On the morning of July 11th, 2025, the body of Dr. Arvind Shastri, a 52-year-
old Sanskrit scholar and head of Nalanda University’s Archaeological
Research Division, was discovered inside the university's closed Heritage
Archives Room (Room 7). He had been missing since the evening of July
10th, following a lecture on "The Vanishing Texts of Nālandā: Myth or
Memory?"
The Archives Room is highly restricted. Only 5 people have authorized
access. The cause of death appears to be blunt force trauma to the back of
the skull. There are no signs of forced entry.
A few key historical manuscripts, including one marked “Manuscript 11B –
The Fire Sutra Scroll,” are now unaccounted for.
THE VICTIM
Name: Dr. Arvind Shastri
Age: 52
Occupation: Head of Archaeological Research, Nalanda University
Specialization: Ancient Buddhist manuscripts and secret oral traditions
Last Seen Alive: 7:42 PM, July 10th, 2025, leaving his office on CCTV
Known For: Being extremely secretive, obsessed with a rumored hidden
sutra believed to have survived the 12th-century destruction of Nalanda
CRIME SCENE DETAILS (Room 7: Heritage Archives)
Room Status: Locked from inside. No forced entry. Door found slightly ajar
the next morning.
Lighting: Dim. One flickering tube light. A storm had caused power
fluctuations that night.
Body Position: Slumped against the archive shelf near the eastern window.
Objects Nearby:
A metal ritual bell, found with blood traces (possible murder weapon)
Scattered parchment pieces
A broken pair of antique spectacles — not belonging to the victim
Missing Items:
Scroll “11B – The Fire Sutra” (one of the oldest in the archive)
Dr. Shastri’s personal notebook (rumored to contain translation progress)
EVIDENCE LOG
Item # Description Notes
E-01 Ritual bell with blood traces Used in Buddhist ceremonies. Cleaned
recently. Partial fingerprint found.
E-02 CCTV footage from July 10, 7 PM–9 PM Victim seen entering Room
7. No exit shown. Footage cuts for 6 mins due to power outage.
E-03 Torn journal page found in his coat Contains sketched symbols +
phrase: “He who chants it aloud, burns truth itself.”
E-04 An old bronze key found in his pocket Doesn’t match any university
locks. Antique. Possibly ceremonial.
E-05 A fragment of ancient silk cloth Smelled of incense. Found clutched in
victim’s hand. Pattern possibly Tibetan.
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SUSPECTS
1. Prof. Rhea Mukherjee (43)
Head of Linguistics Department
Known to have argued with Dr. Shastri over document preservation
techniques
Claims to have been attending a Sanskrit seminar in Patna on July 10
Recently applied for access to Room 7 — denied
2. Tenzin Lama (28)
Visiting Tibetan scholar, researching lost chants
Last seen speaking to Dr. Shastri at 6:30 PM
Known to practice esoteric rituals and chants in seclusion
Doesn’t appear in CCTV footage at all that night
3. Aniket Roy (24)
PhD student under Dr. Shastri
Highly ambitious; rumored to be jealous of Shastri’s recognition
Claims to have been in the library all night (no solid alibi)
Was seen in Room 7 two weeks ago unauthorized — claimed it was an
accident
4. Dr. Vishwanath Iyer (60)
Former professor, retired, but visited campus on July 10
Former mentor of Shastri, had a fallout over "occult interpretations" of
Buddhist texts
Security log shows he entered the east wing at 7:50 PM – no exit recorded
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WITNESS STATEMENTS
Security Guard (Ratan Das):
> “I remember seeing a shadow near the archives around 8:30, but thought it
was Dr. Shastri. Lights were flickering. I didn’t check. I regret it now.”
Librarian (Madhavi):
> “He seemed worried lately… kept muttering about protecting something
from ‘the wrong voice.’ He locked his journal drawer even when stepping out
for tea.”
PhD Student (Jaya Kapoor):
> “Aniket was furious two days ago. Said the professor was ‘burying truth for
ego.’ He was pacing in the courtyard all evening.”
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📚 EXTRA: MYSTERIOUS TRANSLATION FRAGMENTS (Torn Page, E-03)
> “Three syllables. Seven cycles.
He who chants it aloud, burns truth itself.
Let the voice of silence be the final guardian.
Do not open the seal unless the lotus withers.”
> (Symbols sketched along the margin appear to resemble the Tibetan
syllables: ཨོཾ མ་ཎི་ པདྨེ་ ཧཱུྃ)
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INVESTIGATOR NOTES AREA (Use this space for your own deduction)
THEORIES:
Motive? Greed? Jealousy? Fear of truth?
Was this purely academic rivalry — or ritualistic?
Who had access during the blackout?
QUESTIONS:
What does the translation fragment mean?
Who left behind the broken spectacles?
Where is Manuscript 11B now?
Why did the victim carry an antique key?
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YOUR TASK:
Reconstruct the timeline
Build a suspect map
Identify motive + opportunity + means
Theorize what Manuscript 11B contained
Find the killer
Decide what happened that night