DU’s complaint box to pull the rug from under ragging

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New Delhi, June 25: TRYING to put a lid on cases of ragging, Delhi University has decided to make it mandatory for all colleges to introduce a sealed complaint box to enable victims to drop their complaints.

DU Proctor Gurmeet Singh today said the complaint box will be placed outside each college principal’s office.

The University has also decided to give the colleges more teeth to deal with ragging cases. According to another new order — Clause 5 of Ordinance 15 — colleges will now have the ‘‘authority to exercise all (appropriate) disciplinary powers’’. Shorn of officialese, this means colleges would judge ragging cases on their ‘merit’, and award punishment accordingly.

Singh said the idea behind the sealed complaint box is to guarantee anonymity to the students. The first-of-its-kind move, he said, will give the students, especially hostellers, an opportunity to register complaints without fear. “Also, the presence of this mechanism in itself would act as a deterrent.”

He added: ‘‘According to the nature of the complaint, the colleges have been given the power to decide punishment this year — it could be a small fine of Rs 50 or even expulsion.”

Singh said it will also be mandatory to identify a Disciplinary Resource Person in each college, hostel, department

and faculty.

DU officials define ragging as ‘‘any obscene or unpleasant activity that embarrasses the fresher.’’ This is different from “interacting” with freshers or talking to them about the college’s traditions.

Under Ordinance 15, ragging in any form is banned in DU colleges and, in extreme cases, can invite expulsion for the offender.

'Ragging is primal, get rid of it'

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HindustanTimes.com’s new initiative — Vox populi — has kicked off with a bang. The response to our first questionnaire has been enthusiastic and we have received several important insights.

As many as 352 people from India and abroad participated in the online survey. And they were unequivocal, with a great deal to say.

Most of them said ragging is a menace and should be banned. However, there were a few who supported the activity, albeit on a low key.

As many as 255 people were of the opinion that ragging should be banned throughout India. On the other hand, 55 people said ragging was just college prank and need not be forbidden. The remaining 10 were uncertain as they were not able to decide whether it is a menace or a healthy way to begin interaction.

A total of 203 surfers said those who rag should be expelled from college. 69 people, meanwhile, chose the option of expelling the raggers from classes. As many as 57 people felt that a fine should be imposed on the offenders.

Interestingly, a whopping 226 surfers termed ragging a criminal offence. 70 people chose to term it a college caper while 45 others said the penalty need not be very harsh for it.

To our last question about how students should handle ragging, 115 people said students should learn to manage stress, while 186 respondents said they should approach the law. 37 people felt that consulting one’s parents would be a better idea.

Now for the best part: The written responses to the issue.

We were pleasantly surprised to note several respondents confiding in us and describing the way in which they were ragged. A lot many of them said they had to stop studying and seek full-time counselling. All because they were insulted and belittled during ragging.

Here is what Surendra Pal Singh, a surfer from Newmarket had to say:

“I experienced ragging in 1964. After that I was affected so much by it that I could not study anymore. So I began to take revenge. I became a low grader from a high grader. And I joined a gang of fellow students who had the same experience and we became gundas…”

Rajiv from Delhi narrated a similar experience:

“I was viciously bullied & ragged in a reputed school in South Delhi and was unable to get a good score in my exams. So I lost my concentration and wasted away…”

Then there was a participant, Mehak, who had this horrific detail to recount:

“It is common for freshers in my college to be denuded and paraded in the college hostels and even in the city around the campus. They are made to use profane language while being beaten around with slippers, and slapped by the seniors…”

Dr Kushal Banerjee from Kolkata , who heads the India chapter of the Coalition to Uproot Ragging from Education (CURE), sent us a very valuable comment. This is what he had to say:

“I would like to offer my sincere thanks to you for raising this issue. Ragging took a toll on 13 lives in the last 5 years. Many others were disabled, and some were even raped.

In most incidences, raggers strip the victims naked and often in front of the opposite sex. Sometimes, seniors even force male juniors to strip naked and masturbate while they take photographs. All this may be fun for perverts who get nothing but sexual pleasure. But it is the worst nightmare for innocent juniors. If ragging is to be allowed, then rape and gang-rape must also be legalised.”

Phani from Seattle underlined the effect that ragging has on a student. He said:

“Ragging has severely affected my personality. My life will never be the same again. I strongly believe that it should be banned.”

Then there was a highly illuminating response from Deepak, a surfer from Ludhiana:

“As part of ragging, I have seen students being injured and sometimes even killed. Their bodies are then disposed off without a trace. Those who resist are in danger of getting severe bodily injuries, and females are sexually molested if they dare to speak up. These things do not come out into the open and are kept under wraps. Most of those who rag violently are highly connected and nobody has the courage to speak against them. So everyone keeps quiet...”

To say we were horrified is an understatement. But then, we had worse things to encounter.

Our international participants said ragging was a phenomenon seen only in India.

This is what Krish from San Fransisco said:

“I have had the privilege to go to universities in both India and the USA. But I have witnessed nothing like ragging in the western world. “

Our sense of culpability was heightened when people said how ragging was strictly forbidden in their country and the how harsh the penalties were, for an offender.

For instance, Ram from Toronto said: “In Canada you dare not tease a person. You cannot indulge in hooliganism; immediately you are charged for public nuisance. So students in colleges are well-behaved. And ragging and eve teasing are considered criminal offences.”

From here, we passed on to a few responses that supported ragging, but on a modest scale. Dr Suri from Detroit, perhaps, summed it up best when he said:

“Ragging is a healthy custom to get to know newcomers and at the same time make them feel at home. But ragging has its own limitations and should be strictly observed. The present day ragging is making new entrants very scary. Some even go to the extent of committing suicide. I sincerely feel that getting to each other should be with love and respect. In fact, self restraint is the key for all types of fun.”

Shivani from Australia echoed this sentiment. “Ragging, if done in a decent way, will help us to make good friends and also strengthen us to face future difficulties. It will also help students to handle stressful interviews in future.”

These people seemed to feel that ragging, if confined to healthy limits, could cultivate a healthy respect between the seniors and the juniors of a college.

In all, it was an emotional roller coaster, unravelling the many responses to the issue of ragging. Delighted at the number of responses, yet saddened by the sad state of affairs.

We thank you all for participating in our survey and hope your enthusiasm continues. Vox populi will be back with another burning issue, and we look forward to your responses. Till then, happy surfing!

College freshers face anxiety

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NDTV Correspondent

Friday, June 23, 2006 (New Delhi):

Accompanied by his father 18-year old Piyush has come from Lucknow to Delhi University to pursue his dream - but it also means handling fears.

Also hostellers are offering advise to those forced to leave home to pursue their studies in a new city.

"I am from a small town... to get anywhere here you need to take an auto or a rickshaw... I feel lost in this big city," Piyush said of his first experience in Delhi.

Senior students at Delhi University (DU) say they went through the same experience.

"Honestly, it was a culture shock. It was very different from Allahabad. I could not understand anything my seniors said to me," said Rishab, a student at DU.

He added, "don’t lose your identity, be original, that’s the only way to survive. I love it here… I never want to leave...".

About ragging another senior, Nikhil said: "Ragging maybe scary but it also actually helps you become better friends with your seniors".

It may all seem blurred and confusing in the beginning but freshers soon become part of the hustle and bustle.

Life in hostel

For many, admission also means moving out of home and staying in hostels or as paying guests.

For Sneha, Anannya and Maumita belong to St Xavier's College in Mumbai, which has become their temporary home.

Sneha is from the small Deolgaon village in Aurangabad district of Maharashtra. Anannya and Maumita are city girls from Kolkata.

"Travelling was a nightmare. In the local trains its like an automated thing you just stand on the platform the crowd will push you in and the crowd will push you out," said Anannya Bhattacharya.

The girls have been living at a government-run hostel on Mumbai's Marine Drive for the past year.

"I had some problems fitting in. But I had decided that I would not change just because I am in Xavier’s. If you just be who you are you can adjust," said Sneha Harkut.

The city has also taught them a few lessons outside of class.

"[Hostel life] has taught me to be more responsible and confident," Bhattacharya added.

Their advise to freshers - secure a place to stay, do not be afraid and restrict your budget.

HT Survey on Ragging

Link to Survey

"At HT.Com, we're keen to know what our surfers think of the world they live in. Be it politics, sports, Bollywood or literature, we've decided to let their voice be heard. So speak up. And tell us how it should be.

This week, our survey is on ragging.

Call it what you will --- positive interaction, creative introduction or comprehensive initiation, but ragging has been, and still is, a subject of much debate. And there is no effective solution in sight. So,"

Link to Survey

Kerala to move SC in ragging case

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Another related report

The High Court ordered a lie detector test on the victim... The Kerala govt. appeals to the Supreme Court against this order...

Thiruvananthapuram, June 20: The Kerala government would move the Supreme Court against the High Court order directing polygraph and brain mapping test on a nursing student who had been harassed in the name of ragging at SME Institute in Kottayam a few months back.

The government was studying all aspects of the High Court order and consulting legal experts on filing a petition in the Supreme Court against the order, state Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan told the Assembly while replying to a submission on the matter.

Balakrishnan said victims of such cases would not come forward to lodge complaints if the High Court order prevailed.

On the alleged threats received by the victim from certain quarters, he said necessary protection would be given after examining the complaint.

Police had filed chargesheet against the accused in a lower court. The High Court passed the order in a petition filed by one of the accused, he said. (Agencies)

Perverted Sexual ragging at BPT College, Raigad, Maharashtra

We are sorry for the explicit nature of these messages, but these are words of horror...

I m studying in BPT College in Raigad Maharashtra.


Ours is a taluka type area and in that the boys are really hopeless, because we stays in the hostels and they stays nearby. When I was in the First Year on the very first day my 7 Seniors tooked me to the terrace and just removed all my clothes and made me fully naked and one by one had anal sex with me and 4 of them shagged anally and after that left me, i was just dying of pain and could not tell this incident to anybody because i have to still stay in that college and had no courage in saying that i m fucked by some one to others but please i pray that my other juniors should not be harmed

Sexual Abuse at IET, DAVV, Indore

Another report of shamefully brutal acts... (The content is largely unedited)

IET,DAVV,INDORE(M.P).THE INCIDENT IS AS FOLLOWS:

IN THE YEAR 2004 i.e THIS YEAR ONLY I HAVE TAKEN ADMISSINON IN THE INSTITUTE OF ENGG AND TECHNOLOGY,DAVV,INDORE.I HAVE TAKEN A ROOM IN HOSTEL THERE WE WERE BEATEN EVERY DAY SENIORS USED TO CALL US EVERY NIGHT IN THEIR ROOM.

ON 16th OF SEPTEMBER A GROUP OF SENIORS CALLED ME THEY ASKED SOME QESTIONS TO ME IAM UNABLE TO ANSWER IT,THEY TOLD ME TO TAKE OF MY CLOTHES ,THEY MADE ME NAKED AND BEATED ME,THEN THEY FORCEFULLY HAVE THE ANAL SEX WITH ME.THEY DONE THIS 9 -10 TIMES THIS SHAMEFUL EVENT WITH ME. SOME OF MY FRIENDS ALSO FACED THIS. I DID NOT TOLD THIS EVENT TO ANY ONE AS IT IS VERY SHAMEFUL ONE,IN THIS INSTITUTE WE HAVE TO FOLLOW THE DRESS CODE.WE HAVE TO LEARN VERY BAD AND SHAMEFUL TECHNICAL INTROS.WE ARE SEXUALLY ABUSED TOO.

Complain to the authorities and face the music!

A horrific tale from someone who wrote to CURE... (the name of place has been suppressed for anonymity)...

Please dont tell this incident to anybody else in my name, but when i was in college, i was staying to a room which was shared between me and my classmate.

Two years back i was there studying. When i entered the college i was very happy because i got admission to my favorite branch of engineering. One day one of the Senior who was 1year senior to me, had a word with me,on one issue. So i had a word with my Senior who was of 22 years ,and i was 20 years. And complained my college professor regading that issue so the college professor complained to the principal,and the senior was suspended for 8 days and i was given justice.

But after that day that boy kept a watch on me and one day when i was alone at my room he came with his 3 friends and started giving bad words and started beating me, and forcefully those boys removed all of my clothes including my brief and 2 of the boys started removing there clothes and were naked with me and started physically with me on my body i was very much ashamed but i could not do anything, and after half and hour 1 of the boy had a anal sex with me and gifted me with his spe.... and i then left the room i was with a deep shock and could not tell this incident to anybody because it was neither a ragging nor a incident which can be told to anybody,so i kept quiet but today after 2years i m telling this incidence to somebody,but please dont let my name to come in.

Where's our conscience?

Click Here for the Article...

Some insights into the so-called "toughening" of soldiers through ragging-like means in the military. Interesting perspectives towards "induction of a new recruit into a group".

Ragging finds its roots in such military notions. For more on how ragging evolved from such military customs, check out http://www.noragging.com/analysis/evolution-of-ragging.html

...
So when instructors receive raw young recruits in military training establishments, half their work is already done. All that remains is to erase a soldier’s individuality, and drum instant, unquestioning obedience into him. This is done through systematic and savage bullying, made innocuous by harmless-seeming terms such as ‘hazing’ or ‘ragging’.
...
But as a generation of Vietnam veterans learned after they returned home, you do not just walk away after burying the dead. For many, committing nameless horrors because you are ordered to leaves deep psychological scars that you carry your whole life. The ultimate axis of evil is the one between ignorance, fear, hatred and violence.
...

DU asks colleges to be vigil with spy cams to check ragging

Link to Article

As in the last few years, this year too spy-cams will find use in DU campus...

New Delhi, June 15: Senior students planning to have fun by ragging fresh entrants in the Delhi University (DU) colleges will have to cheat spy cams this year, if they want to go scot free!

The university authorities have asked all the 79 colleges under the institution to take all necessary steps, including installation of spy cameras in their campuses, to avoid any "unsolicited" attempt of seniors on the fresh entrants.

"There is a standing guideline for every colleges as to what steps should be taken to check any ragging incident. Besides, we have specially asked all the colleges to be on guard by taking all necessary steps, including installing hidden cameras, to check such incidents," Dean of Students Welfare Prof Satinder Vij said.

He said every college has a discipline committee to sensitise students not to rag their juniors, as it is a "criminal offence".

This apart, many colleges have already installed hidden cameras at strategic places in their campuses to detect the offenders.

"Any unsolicited attempt, verbal or physical, by the senior students should be discouraged. Very often, ragging takes place under the cover of interaction. We are discouraging that also," he said.

There has been a significant fall in the number of ragging cases in the colleges under Delhi University during the last three years, he said. Last year, not a single ragging case had been reported, he said.

"Despite all the efforts, if any student involves in ragging, due punishment will be given depending on the nature of the case," he warned.

Telugu film with ragging as the theme

http://www.indiaglitz.com/channels/telugu/article/23114.html

Some excerpts from the article...

...
Now Dasari Arun Kumar is eyeing a comeback. And not surprisingly, he is planning a return through a remake. Sources say that he may get to do the Telugu remake of the Malayalam hit Chinthamani Kola Case.

The movie deals with a brainy lawyer who doles his own brand of judgement to venal men. The story elaborates about the death of a young, poor girl after ragging in the college by nine rich and spoilt girls.
...

Another ragging torture:

Kolkata, August 2003. Sayandeep Bandopadhyaya a student of the Jalpaiguri Engineering College was forced by senior students to strip and hit himself with slippers even as other students struck him with bicycle chains and iron rods. Not content with that the perpetrators of these crimes made him sign a suicide note

Ragging Death:

Hyderabad, September 2001. M. Srinadh Reddy (19) a first year student of Venkateshwara Engineering College, Hyderabad, committed suicide by throwing himself before an oncoming train. “This is my last appeal that seniors should not target juniors in the name of ragging… and destroy their promising lives,” he said in his suicide note

Ragging: Engineering student hangs himself after trauma

September 03, 2002:
Anup Kapoor, a 19-year-old first year engineering student has committed suicide on Thursday by hanging himself from a ceiling fan at his house here. He had returned home from his institute in Lucknow following sexual harassment and mental torture by his seniors.
An outstanding student, Anup had joined the Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET) on September 2. Though, according to the rules, first-year students don't get entry into the hostel, he was allotted a room in the Anand Villa hostel. In his suicide note, Anup said that he was going through mental agony due to the sexual harassment by second-year students of the institute in the name of ragging.
The note said that on some occasions, the seniors dragged the first-year students out from their rooms, took them to a room, asked them to strip down and play ''kabaddi''. It said the physical and mental torture of the first-year students did not end just there.
The maternal aunt of the victim, Dr Gita Seth, said that Anup had complained several times about the harassment to the warden of the Anand Villa hostel and IET officials. She said that Anup had also said he did not want to continue his education in the institute.
Paras Nath Kapoor, Anup's father and a teacher, cursed the institute's administration with tears in his eyes, ''It was my fault that I couldn't guess the gravity of torture Anup was experiencing in the name of ragging in his institute.''
Anup's mother, Manju Kapoor, a school teacher, was not in a condition to say anything except for chanting Anup's name. He had qualified in the MLNR and CBSE entrance tests last year and had also topped the list in Rohilkhand University's engineering examination. However, he wanted to join a high-ranking institute. He had left the MLNR seat as he wanted mechanical engineering course. When he got it at the IET, Lucknow, he decided to join there.
The police said Anup took ''this extreme step due to the agony of ragging by seniors''

"We were told to do bad things"

Courtsey TOI october 14th, 2005 JALANDHAR:
"You call it ragging but it is humiliation and should be banned. It is, but everyday students are ragged in the college. They are made naked and ordered to do bad things. This all has brought me to this point. I can't tell it even to my parents. It is not justified but I can't bear it any more." Amit Kumar, reg. no. 234, industrial engineering, room no. 312, Hostel I, NIT, Jalandhar. This suicide note, left by Amit from Bareilly, UP, says it all. It was recovered by Government Railway Police staff from a cupboard in his hostel room. A first year student of the NIT here, Amit had jumped before a train on Tuesday night. The note gives the names of 10 of Amit's seniors who ragged him, their branches and home states. "Sir" follows every name, exhibiting the lasting terror of the seniors. Amit's father Triwani Sahai had alleged on Wednesday that his son had told him about the ragging and took this extreme step as he could not take the torture. The GRP, which had registered a case, have now added Section 306, abetment to suicide, against one Rahul, his associates and the college management. The distraught father told the police that Amit called him up at 2.58 pm that fateful day and told him that he was being tormented. He had also said that the ragging would be over by Sunday after the freshers party. Sahai left for Bareilly with the mortal remains of his son Wednesday midnight after getting his statement recorded. SSP railway police Tulsi Ram told TNN that the note would be sent to a handwriting expert for confirmation and to know when it was written. Inspector Lakha Singh, SHO of the GRP police station and case investigation officer, visited hostel no. 1 on Thursday and questioned the boys. Many students, including Amit's roommates Yogesh and Anuj, had left the hostel, panic and anguish was clearly visible among others.

One more student becomes victim of severe ragging

Bargarh (Orissa) May 18, 2004 (ANI):
Yet another case of gruesome ragging in professional colleges has surfaced in Orissa.
Tapan Jajati Chhuria, a second year engineering student, has been bed-ridden eversince he was mercilessly beaten up two months ago. The 22-year-old is a student of Padma Shree Krutartha Acharya Institute of Engineering and Technology at Bargarh.
Tapan, who has lost hearing in one ear, said that he was targeted by seniors as he belonged to a low caste.
"That day, when I was returning from my practical classes with another first year student, three students came and started beating me with shoes and belts," said Tapan.
He was rushed to a local hospital by the teachers and later on his parents took him to a speciality hospital in Vellore.
"For treatment, I took him to Krishna Hospital in Vellore. Doctors there told us that he had lost hearing in one ear. He also has to undergo thigh bone replacement surgery, otherwise his leg would have to be amputated," said Soukilal Chhuria, Tapan's father.
Santosh Acharya, the Principal of the college however said that the altercation was initiated by the victim.
"After assessing the situation completely, I found out that Churia (the victim) first started the fight, and attacked a first year student. But because Churia was beaten up so mercilessly, we have decided to suspend all the three students from the institute," said Acharya.
Ragging has become a social problem and several students have ended up spending days in hospital beds with traumatic experiences. Unofficial estimates say that nearly 25 per cent of the students who join professional courses drop out as they are not able to cope with severe ragging by their seniors.(ANI)

Ragging at Tibia Medical College

August 07, 2005:
In their written complaint to the police, the two freshers, Abhishek Tiwari from Patna and Riyaz from Madhya Pradesh have recounted in detail how, on Thursday night they were confronted by a group of seniors. They were forced to strip, dance and masturbate on mobile camera and then asked to parade to the girls' hostel. On Friday, they filed a complaint and the area police have detained the three accused for questioning. The mood at the hostel is tense, the very names of some of the alleged perpetrators of the crime — Tangen Wangchuk, Wasim and Shahabuddin — all second-year students, eliciting terror. One of their classmates had just started talking to this correspondent about Thursday night's outrage when a bike revved inside the hostel gates. One glance at the bike and the student fled. Old-timers and present hostel inmates recall the countless times they have been asked to enact copulation with a fellow student, the only difference with the present controversy being there were no phone cameras to capture their sense of horror and embarrassment. And they were usually fully-clothed, or at worst, shirtless. A French kiss with another guy is something almost all of them have been through. The mildest varieties of ragging at the Tibbia hostel are when a student is ordered to confront a female classmate with questions about her figure or the make of her undergarments. There are those who have chosen to drop out, students for whom the "breaking in" had proved too much to endure. Speaking on conditions of anonymity, an ex-student, who had left in his second year said: "On my second or third day, I was made to stand with my face towards a wall, and asked to write my name on it with my urine. Unless fairly senior, one always has to watch out for homosexual assaults." College principal B N Sinha, however, rubbishes the allegations. His explanation: "Now that something like this has happened, students are probably telling these stories to make (such incidents) sound commonplace and to hush the thing up. Such incidents are impossible because we have a proper six member diciplinary committee in place.

MBBS students hangs himself after ragging

January 08, 2004
Bilaspur (Chhattisgarh), January 7, A first year student of the Bilaspur Medical College on Wednesday committed suicide by hanging himself from a ceiling fan after being allegedly ragged by senior students. Although college and police authorities have ruled out the possibility of ragging in the campus, first-years have sought a judicial probe into the matter.Lokesh Yadav, a resident of Raipur, was studying for his MBBS degree while staying at the college hostel. On Wednesday, he did not attend his classes. When some students returned to the hostel, they found him hanging from the ceiling fan of his room.The police have registered a case of suicidal death and sent the body for postmortem."Circumstantial evidence points to suicide. How can we claim it was due to ragging? No case of ragging has been reported from the college so far," Bilaspur SP B.S. Maravi said. Son Mani, registrar of the Guru Ghashidas University under which the college functions, also echoed Maravi.But junior students differed. "Just a few days ago, seniors forced Lokesh to dance on one foot and sing lewd film songs. Lokesh was a really sensitive boy. I think he was unable to bear the humiliation any more, and chose the easy way out," said Sanjay (name changed), who says he has left the hostel because he could not stomach the 'harassment'.Many students told the Hindustan Times on condition of anonymity that they dared not report the matter to the authorities. They said their seniors had threatened them with dire consequences if they did so.

Ragging drags medical student to death

An MBBS Student studying Second Year - Prasad studying in Government Medical College in Anantapur died committing suicide. Ragging was believed to be the prime reason for his taking this extreme step. The parents of Mr. Prasad who saw the dead body of their son were deeply hurt and slapped the Principal holding him responsible for Prasad to take this step. The Principal lodged a complaint against this. Activists of SFI and AISF in large numbers gathered at the college

MP boy turns insane after severe ragging

By S Sanjay in Bhopal Friday, 26 August , 2005, 15:17
Twenty-year-old Raja dreamt of becoming an engineer but six months of torture in the name of ragging at Samrat Ashok Technological Institute (SATI) in Vidisha, 70 km from Bhopal, has virtually destroyed his future.
Driven to near insanity, he now spends most of his time in the isolation ward of a local hospital. Raja shudders while recounting his first term in college. He had to suffer hundreds of slaps and public abuse by senior students for almost six months.
Requests to be pardoned only heightened his woes and he instead of disclosing his torture, endured it silently till he lost his sanity. His dreams of earning an engineering degree have been replaced by an acute desire for vengeance.
"I will not let them get away with it," he keeps on repeating every time images of two senior students flash through his mind.
When not in hospital, Raja is confined round-the-clock in a small room of his Rohtas Nagar house. He is undergoing extensive psychological treatment.
His father said that he has decided to withdraw his son from SATI. All that he wants now is his son to be normal again. "I only pray to God that the college administration will return the documents of my son taken at admission," he said.
Dr R C Jain, director of SATI, when asked about Rajendra's ragging by senior students, pleaded ignorance. He said Rajendra's family must meet the college authorities to solve the problem.
Madhya Pradesh Human Rights Commission Chairman Justice DM Dharmadhikari, when contacted, said the parents or relatives of Raja must report the matter to the watchdog body before it can act.
Names have been changed to protect identity

Architecture students suspended for vulgar ragging

By Indo-Asian News Service
New Delhi, Aug 26 (IANS) Seven seniors of the capital's prestigious School of Planning and Architecture (SPA) have been suspended for forcing three new students to vulgar forms of ragging, including compelling one student to force himself on a dog.
Officials at SPA said the seniors have been suspended for three weeks and charged a fine of Rs 10,000 each for forcing three first year students to have sex with each other and compelling one to force himself on a dog, while several students watched.
The suspension came after the first year students lodged a complaint with the college authorities last Wednesday. The incident had reportedly taken place in SPA's planning building in broad daylight, officials said.
The college set up a special committee to look into the matter. Officials said that the complaint was confirmed and verdict given last weekend.
The suspended students would be permitted to attend classes during the suspension period, although they would not be marked present, officials said

Abu Ghraib style ragging rocks Uttaranchal

From Shishir Prashant DH News Service Dehra Dun:

Lying in a hospital bed, Deepak Kamboj is convalescing from the injuries inflicted on him during ragging in a university here. “I don’t know whether I will be able to go back to the university again,” a dazed Kamboj said. Kamboj’s fear is not baseless as the University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES), where the incident took place recently, has not only suspended him but also banned his entry to the campus.
Kamboj was one of the four victims, who were beaten black and blue during ragging by seniors. Like Kamboj, other students have not attended classes for the last one week after they were paraded naked by seniors belts around their necks in what is being described as a scene straight from the Abu Ghraib jail in Iraq. They were dragged and forced to walk like dogs. “We were virtually treated like the prisoners at Abu Ghraib jail,” said Vishal Singh, who was also thrashed in full view of the girl students inside the classroom. “We were thrashed for nearly an hour,” said another student Rishabh Sharma. Instead of taking any action against the culprits, the university authorities lodged an FIR against Kamboj’s father Vinod Kamboj alleging that he had trespassed on the campus without prior permission. Police too seem to have acted in a whimsical manner and arrested Vinod Kamboj for allegedly assaulting students of the varsity. “We have arrested Vinod for beating up the varsity students,” confirmed DIG Garhwal R S Meena. The incident on Friday rocked the Vidhan Sabha and Opposition members led by Trivendra Singh Rawat (BJP) demanded a high-level inquiry. Minister for Technical Education Hira Singh Bist promptly ordered an inquiry and said the police are also looking into the incident. “We will not spare anyone guilty,” Bist said.

ENGINEERING STUDENTS RETURN HOME BATTERED FROM MURSHIDABAD COLLEGE

Bardhaman Dot Com News Bureau Burdwan, 16 Aug 04 :

Ragging at colleges in the state again hit the headlines. This time, a student of a private engineering college had to come back home after being brutally tortured by senior students. The ragging at the Abdul Rahaman Memorial poly-technique College, Murshidabad have almost destroyed the dream of 48 aspirant engineering students. A few of the students managed to reach back home fleeing from the horrifying ragging conducted on them by their senior students. One of them is Sayed Souvick Ali alias Bapan. He took admission at food processing technology department of the college after ranking 1099 at the state joint entrance examination for the poly-technique colleges. The aspiring engineer is back home with dreams shattered & bruises all over his body reveling the inhuman torture faced by him.
The hooliganism in the name of `customizing the fresher' started on 8th August night itself, the day Souvick & other students arrived at the college. The college is yet to have its own hostel & the students were accommodated at 12 private houses. Souvick & some other students were accommodated at Abul Hossain's residence. Souvick & his family members informed that, he along with other fresher had to face `inhuman physical & mental torture' for the next 4 days. His mother, Asia Begum said, "those animals have tortured my son extensively. He has been beaten by sticks, brunt all over by cigarette tips & even forced to drink alcohol." They also
Ailing Souvick with his mother at Burdwan residence
complained that, the senior students have even wounded his vertebra seriously by `kicking at it'. The ailing Souvick informed, "groups of students from other mess also joins the party. They are led by a blue cap wearing student. Even two senior girls joined their group & showered slang on us which added insult & mental agony along with the physical pains."Souvick managed to escape from the mess on 12th night & reached home in battered condition. He also informed bardhaman.com that, Shyamsundar, another student at the computer science wing from Bhatchala, Burdwan also fled from the college with similar experiences. The family informed that the principal of the college, Lal Mohammad invited the parents to take back their son to the college & assured them that he personally will ensure that such incidence is not repeated, but the same has being declined by the parents. They informed the principal that, "we can't send their son to the same place where he had to face such a consequence." The family has written about the fact to the local MLA, Yunis Ali Mondal & Moinul Hassan, the ex-member of parliament from Murshidabad. The college authorities described the situation at the college to be `peaceful & normal' but they refused to comment on the incidence. Local sources informed that after students like Souvick & Shyamsundar were compelled to flee from the college, the college authorities & the governing body members held a meeting to decide that how can this action of senior students be stopped. A student of the college was even assaulted by the local people for ragging charges. Police officials had to visit the college campus, but the master-minds behind this inhuman act are yet to be caught & removed from the college which adds terror to the pain & anguish of the ragged students

Another ragging victim's death raises alarm in Chittoor

From Omer Farooq
HYDERABAD - The suicide by a 19-year-old engineering student in Chittoor following ragging has raised an alarm here. The event occurred just as the first anniversary of the death of another ragging victim in the state is a few weeks away.
Police said M. Srinadh Reddy, a first year student of Mechanical Engineering at the Venkateshwara Engineering College, committed suicide by jumping before a running training between Tirupati and Renigunta stations.
The student, who had enrolled himself in the college only on September 24, has left a note blaming the ragging by senior students for his extreme step. According to police, the student jumped before a train in the early hours of Saturday. "Ragging is responsible for my suicide. I wish this fate would never fall on any other student, at least after my death," he wrote in a note and posted it to his parents in Y. Koduru village under Yerraguntala mandal of Cuddpah district.
In another letter addressed to the students of his college, Srinadh Reddy made an emotional appeal to them to put an end to the menace of ragging. Having passed the Intermediate examinations with distinction, Reddy had joined the B.Tech course at Venkateshwara Engineering College.
An 18-year-old student of Anantapur district, B. Govardhan, who was a student of first year B Sc (Agriculture) course at the Mahanandi college, had committed suicide in December.

Students, college staff held for ragging death

By Indo-Asian News Service
Chennai, Dec 22 (IANS) Police have arrested two students and two officials of an engineering college here, holding them responsible for the suicide of a student after he was severely ragged.
Police are on the lookout for the college principal and for a third student.
Mohan Karthik, a student of the S.K.R. Engineering college on the outskirts of Chennai was found hanging in his hostel room Sunday.
Police said Karthik was forced to bathe in his own urine, resulting in severe trauma that prompted him to commit suicide.
The parents of the 19-year-old from neighbouring Andhra Pradesh said in a complaint to police that their son had told them he was ragged and humiliated by senior students.
The parents said they had complained in writing to the college authorities but no action was taken.
The suicide has once again focused attention on ragging in Tamil Nadu colleges that the government has been unable to contain despite several strict laws that have been in force since 1997.
Navarasu, the 19-year-old son of former Madras University vice chancellor K. Ponnuswamy, a first year student of the Muthaiyah Medical College of Annamalai University went missing from his hostel room Nov 6, 1996.
His mutilated body was discovered far away the next day.
John David, a hostel-mate of Navarasu, was charged with committing the ragging-related murder and was sentenced to life imprisonment. The high court acquitted him.
In September, 15 students of a Tiruchirapally law college were suspended on charges of ragging.
In 2000, Deepa, a first-year student of an arts college near Kancheepuram set herself ablaze after she was ragged.
In September 2003, eleven students of a medical college here, who had allegedly ragged first year students, were debarred from attending college and taking examinations for two years.
The problem has become so acute that NGO Exnora International has even instituted an award for a ragging-free college

Jr's beaten, paraded naked while ragging
By: PTI October 19, 2005
Dehradun: In a shocking incident, some first year engineering students were allegedly beaten up and paraded naked by their seniors in the presence of girls in a private university campus here, police said today.
Five students, who were injured in the incident yesterday, have been hospitalized, they said.
Senior police officials said the matter was being investigated even as staff of the University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES) were not available for comments.
A group of nearly 25 senior students barged into the class room of first year students of the university yesterday and after bolting the room from inside, asked the juniors to strip in the presence of girls students whom they forced to remain seated, police said.
When the juniors resisted, the seniors started beating them up and threatened them of dire consequences if they did not oblige.
However, none of the seniors involved in the ragging have been arrested as yet

Ragging spreads to schools

"How can I ride my bicycle with one hand? My friends will make fun of me. Grandma, please give me poison, let me die," wails this student who is only 15-years-old. This is nothing but the result of gruesome ragging. Thanks to a schoolmate, a beast and a bully, who pushed him out of a running train, this poor boy, Sridhar, has not only lost a hand but has also become deaf in one ear.
A X-standard student of a private school in Tambaram, Sridhar lost his mother when he was a nine-month-old baby. His father got married again and is living in Dubai. Sridhar is staying with his grandmother and uncle in Balaji Nagar in Irumbuliyur, next to Tambaram. Sridhar, who left for school on the morning of March 6, returned home, after several days, minus a hand and sense of hearing in one ear.
Sridhar narrated the story." That day (March 6) I left for school in the afternoon. I did not want to go to school by cycle, since I was afraid my tyres would be deflated. So I parked the cycle in the railway station's cycle stand and came to the platform. Feroz Khan, a +1 student, and 2 other boys also came there. Feroz Khan asked me what happened to my cycle. I told him I left it at home. He snatched my school bag and threw it inside a moving train. I ran to retrieve it. Feroz Khan and the other two boys also boarded the train. They made me sit near the window and kept taunting me. I got up from there and stood near the doorway. Feroz Khan followed me and hit me on my face and stomach. When I started yelling, unable to bear the pain, they pushed me out of the train. I fell down, near the Sanatorium. I was conscious after I fell down. I got up and started walking slowly. I immediately realised that my one hand was missing. Looking for help, I reached the Sanatorium railway station and gave my telephone number to the people who were there. I do not know what happened next. I regained consciousness only in Stanley Hospital. I have lost one hand; I have also become deaf in one year," says Sridhar, sobbing uncontrollably.
Sridhar's uncle, Saravanan is an engine driver. He managed to pick up the severed hand from the tracks, but the doctors said it is not possible to put it back. Sridhar has been at the receiving end of the bullying tactics of Feroz Khan for the past six months. He had also threatened Sridhar with dire consequences, if he squealed. Though this boy lost one hand, the police had registered the case only as a train accident. Sridhar, who was admitted on 6th, regained consciousness only on 9th. He has his right hand only. Doctors are hopeful that his hearing may be restored with the help of specialists.
Sridhar's grandmother wary of the hassles and the unavoidable trips to the courts, police station, etc. did not prefer a complaint. But greatly moved and upset by her grandson's plight, she finally went to the police. Police are on the look out for Feroz Khan, the student responsible for this dastardly act. Feroz has been suspended from school. Sridhar, who had to miss his X-std. exams, is now sitting at home, crestfallen.
Let us wish sincerely that Sridhar gets an artificial limb. Let us also hope his hearing will be restored. Whatever may be, who can mend his broken heart?

Ragging victim in MP attempts suicide
By Narad in Bhopal
Wednesday, 24 December , 2003, 15:20
A first-year MBBS student in Indore, Madhya Pradesh is reported to have attempted suicide following continuous ragging by his seniors.
Nineteen-year-old Anuj Khargar, a student of the MGM Medical College, consumed anti-anxiety pills in a bid to end his life before slashing both his wrists after being ragged by his seniors earlier.
The matter came to light on Monday after the private clinic where he is undergoing treatment reported the matter to the police. No FIR has yet been registered by the police against any of the accused. However, the Madhya Pradesh Human Rights Commission has directed the MGM Medical College acting Dean Dr MK Saraswat to initiate an enquiry into the incident at the earliest.
Anuj told his roommates and landlord Gulshan Yadav that some of the second-year MBBS students had been ragging him from the last few days. Besides torturing him mentally, they also undressed him and beat him up.
Anuj's father Vijay Sagar said that he did not want any action against anyone and was happy that his son was safe.
Earlier too, cases of ragging have been reported to the college administration but no action was taken against the accused.