Monday, January 25, 2010

SVNIT students allegedly ragged in public garden

TNN, 24 January 2010, 10:42pm IST

SURAT: The Sardar Vallabhbhai National Institute (SVNIT) authorities on Sunday deliberated for long hours the issue of alleged incident of ragging of 15 students, including four girls, on Saturday evening at Sarojini Naidu public garden in Umra area near the campus.

The college authorities were informed about the incident by a local student, who in turn was alerted by an evening walker. The evening walker said the students were made to do squats, hold their ears and become murga'. The freshers were scared of their seniors and were not cooperating with the authorities in the inquiry, sources said. Even in the past, a few minor incidents of ragging had been reported at the SVNIT.

The SVNIT officials had rushed to the spot and found 30 B.Tech students including freshers and seniors in the garden. The students jumped barricades and fences to escape, yet a few were identified and questioned.

They told the authorities that it was a routine party of students belonging to Andhra Pradesh and rejected the ragging charges. However, the institute authorities were provided photographs and video clip by a few residents and evening walkers. The institute authorities ordered an inquiry by the Institute Level Anti Ragging Committee (ILARC). The freshers have refused to reveal anything till Sunday afternoon and maintained that they were just celebrating a party.

It is a routine affair at the SVNIT in which students of different states organise their separate parties to welcome fresher or to give farewell to seniors. These parties take place soon after the common freshers party. The students are supposed to take permission for organising freshers party outside the campus which they had not taken for the one held on Saturday.

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