Ragging continues in colleges

Srinagar: Even though ragging has been officially banned and is punishable by law but in valley’s premier professional collages the practice is very much in vogue, even though the intensity may have changed. As the new academic session is about to commence by April, some students who have recently sought the admission in professional colleges are apprehensive about the possible ragging incidents. Saba Javaid has been planning for long to get admitted in an engineering college for the much sought after MCA course.

This year after completing her BCA from the Government Women’s College, Saba is looking forward to pursue her master’s degree in the a college. However, after her friend informed her about the behaviour of seniors towards juniors in the college campus, Saba is concerned. “Initially I was very eager and excited about my admission in a professional engineering college. But after my friend told me about the kind of behaviour seniors have towards juniors, I got scared. It has made me to think whether or not I should stick to my decision”, Saba told The Kashmir Monitor.

Well placed sources revealed that the senior students more often are seen bullying the juniors and fresher’s. Fatima (name changed), an ex student of a professional college says that she along with her batch mates have been the victims of ragging throughout their stay in the college. “We had to wish the seniors every time we saw them. We were not allowed to call their names. We were told to refer to them as ‘Sir’ and ‘Ma’am’. Canteen was banned for juniors and we were not even allowed to move out of our class during the lunch break”, said Fatima.

As per the Jammu and Kashmir Prohibition of Ragging Act, 2011, “ from the date of commencement of the Act, ragging within or outside any educational institution in the State shall be prohibited and no person shall commit, abet, propagate or participate in ragging within or outside any educational institution”. “Our seniors really used to humiliate us. Boys were not allowed to wear jeans, only formal clothes. Girls were questioned out of blue. It was insulting”, added Fatima.

 According to the act any person caught engaged in ragging has to pay a penalty. The act states, “Whosoever, directly or indirectly, commits or participates in or abets or propagates ragging within or, outside any educational institution shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years or with fine which may extend to ten thousand rupees or with both”. Meanwhile, last year a 3rd Semester Diploma student of the same institution was reported to be found ragging a fresher in the campus canteen.

BGSU suspends 9 students for ragging juniors

News Agency of kashmir 10/7/2009 11:01:41 PM

Rajouri Oct 07 (NAK) Probably first time in the history of educational institution management of Jammu and Kashmir, 9 students were today suspended by the Ghulam Shah Badshah University on the charges of ragging their juniors.

Taking lead in implementing anti ragging UGC’s strictures, Ghulam Shah Badshah University authority’s suspended 9 students after two groups of Freshers filed separate complaint that they were subjected to ragging by their seniors.

Reliable sources told News Agency of Kashmir that first student of B-tech first year held a demonstration in the campus premises to protest against ragging at the hands of their seniors.

The protesting students named 9 students who grilled some of them and forced them to strip off their clothes, they complained. The victims alleged that the seniors thrashed those who refused to obey their orders.

The University authorities took the cognizance of the incident and directed the anti ragging Squad to inquire into the matter.

After inquiring the matter, the anti-ragging squad found the named students guilty and recommended their action against them.

Endorsing the recommendations, the university authorities immediately rusticated all the nine students. (NAK)

[KashmirObserver] SHO Injured in Attack by College Raggers

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Srinagar, Mar 04, KONS: With the re-opening of educational institutions after winter, the scourge of ragging has raised its head with full force in the colleges of Srinagar, with new entrants being harassed to the point of mental torment by so-called seniors.

College authorities seem to have adopted a “see no evil, hear no evil” attitude, refusing to acknowledge that the menace exists in their midst, and take no action against offenders.

The situation has gotten so out of hand, that a police officer from the Kothi Bagh police station was seriously injured and had to be hospitalized after he was attacked by students of the SP College who were engaged in ragging.

The officer, the station house officer (SHO) of the police station, Pervez Ahmad, had led a police party to the campus after receiving reports that ragging was in progress in the college.

But they had to face a heavy barrage of stones from the offending seniors, leading to serious injuries to the SHO.

Two students, Aamir Reyaz Zargar of Harwan and Yawar Muhammad of Khanyar, said to have been involved in the incident, have been detained by police, while a search is on for their companions.

Though a strict law exists against ragging, college authorities in the valley do not act to check the deplorable practice, prompting delinquent seniors in degree colleges across Kashmir to take advantage of the laxity and impose their superiority over raw new comers by abusive means.

[MeriNews] Jammu University students stage protest against ragging

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A group of students were ragged by senior students in one of the hostels in Jammu University campus. Junior students were thrashed, paraded naked and later humiliated by some of the senior students. They protested against university administration.

A GROUP of students, who were agitated over the repeated incidents of ragging, ransacked office complex of vice chancellor of Jammu University Prof Amitabh Mattoo last Thursday. They staged protest later outside his chamber demanding strict actions against those students involved in ragging incidents. According to the report, a group of students were ragged by senior students in one of the hostels in Jammu University campus. Junior students were reportedly thrashed, paraded naked and later humiliated by some of the senior students. While staging protest, the students were unhappy with the university authorities for not taking prompt action against students involved in incidents of ragging happened on Wednesday night.

Agitated students alleged that the incidents of ragging were going on inside the hostel for past several days and the issue was brought into the notice of the university authorities. “On Wednesday evening also when the incident took place we immediately contacted our hostel warden but he refused to come and informed us to meet him in the morning”, students peeved over the delayed response told media persons outside the VC chamber amid chanting slogans loudly.

The victimized students alleged that they brought the matter into the notice of the university authorities early in the morning, yet they failed to take any action against the culprits. Angry over the poor response of the authorities, the students assembled outside the main gate of the administrative block and smashed windowpanes, flowerpots and wall paintings. Later, they staged protest outside the VC chamber and chanted slogans demanding action against the students responsible for the act.

University authorities reportedly made several attempts to pacify the agitating students but went in vain. Groups of students also clashed with each other exchanging hot words outside VC’s office trading charges against each other. Dean student welfare PS Pathania told media that university administration has already identified those students who were behind ragging incidents. “We have informed local police authorities and appropriate action will be taken against them soon, he added. Superintendent of Police, who arrived on the spot, said that University administration have been asked to submit a written complain against the students so that they can register an FIR for further action in this case.

[TheCheers] College students in J-K protest ragging

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Jammu, Dec 7 (ANI): Students belonging to the Jammu University took out a protest rally here on Thursday against ragging.

They shouted slogans against the hostel authorities for not ensuring their safety and security.

The students were protesting against the ragging of some Muslim students by their seniors belonging to Hindu community. They alleged of being beaten up by their seniors.

"There was a group of boys who were drunk and were creating the chaos. Some of them were also outsiders. We were sitting inside our room, when suddenly some boys came and forced us to open the door of our room. Once inside, they started beating us. When we tried to defend ourselves, they took out sharp weapons with which they threatened us. One of them also threatened to shave of my beard," said Mohammed Aslam, a student.

Ragging has long been an issue of debate in educational institutions, forcing the Central Government to enforce strict anti-ragging laws in universities and colleges. (ANI)

[GreaterKashmir] Stop ragging or we’ll commit suicide: IAMS students

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MIR FAHEEM ASLAM

Srinagar, Nov 22: Scores of students of the Institute of Asian Medical Sciences (IAMS) at Zakura on Thursday threatened to commit suicide if the college authorities don’t rein in the senior students who are ragging the freshers in the college.

The new comers in the college, who have joined the college nearly a month back to pursue a Bachelors degree in Unani Medicine (BUMS) said the final year students of the college have been “ruthlessly ragging” them for the past one month.

The college authorities, they added, have miserably failed to curb the ragging menace in the college. “We are not against interacting with our seniors. We respect them, but they are resorting to hooliganism and the college administration is watching all this haplessly,” the students, wishing anonymity, told Greater Kashmir.

The seniors, they said, are asking boys to “remove and tighten their pants” in front of girls.
“They (seniors) are asking us to perform immoral acts that we can’t explain,” the students said. “We’re humiliated and nobody is coming to our rescue.”

The college authorities, they said, are not paying heed to their grievances, forcing them to seek help of the media persons in curbing the problem. “We’ll commit suicide if this ragging continues,” said a visibly perturbed student, who approached GK with her mother.

“We’ll quit the college if the college authorities do not initiate disciplinary action against the seniors who have unleashed a reign of terror in the college and are harassing the girls unnecessarily.”

The seniors, they added, have asked them to follow “their guidelines” that they have pasted on certain walls of the college building. The guidelines go like this: “Juniors must know that BUMS seniors are never wrong; if any junior creates indiscipline, he or she will move 3-4 steps backwards and then wish the seniors; if any student complains before the college authorities of ragging, they will be rudely ragged; all juniors will call senior boys as sir and senior girls as madam; and finally no students will use his or her cell before any senior.”

“If any student commits suicide, the college authorities will be responsible for it,” they said, adding, they will request the university authorities to derecognize the college if the ragging continues.

“The university authorities must take a strong note of what’s happening in the college,” they said.

When Greater Kashmir apprised the Station House Officer (SHO) Zakura about the problem, he promised action. “I haven’t received any written complaint in this regard. The moment I get receive a complaint in this regard, I assure you that we’ll take action against the culprits,” the SHO, Raja Tasleem said.

When contacted, the college principal Dr Khurseed Ahmad Bakshi said that he has constituted special teams to monitor ragging. “If the students will identify the persons resorting to ragging we will certainly take action against them,” Bakshi told Greater Kashmir. “We can’t tolerate ragging in the college.”

[GreakerKashmir] A torture called Ragging

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MANTASHA BIN RASHID

I asked, “is it your uniform ? “, when I saw some dumb looking guys coming out of The National Institute of Technology (NIT), Hazratbal, while I was waiting for a bus. I spotted a bunch of students who were juniors to me in the school. Today they appeared very awkward by their very behaviour. I went forth and picked up a friendly chat. They said , “It is no less than a hell inside. From day-one only we are given the set of instructions....Plaited trousers, black school shoes, plain shirt, army cut (one inch hair ), no bags.....either carry your books in a poly bag or in your hand “. We are told to suffocate ourselves by fastening even the collar button of our shirts, one among them said. The other added , “We are made to walk with our heads bowed down as if sinners or some outcasts and to top it all we have to greet every damn senior every damn time we see him “. They said that they walk in to the college surreptitiously like thieves and select the most isolated path to their classroom, so that they are not spotted by the seniors and put to an unjust treatment.

But that is oppression, I thought .” How can you bear that? Why don’t you complain against it ? “To that, one of them smirked saying that the college people have their wonderful bundle of rules. He said , “on the day of my counseling I discovered on the notice board , in there , a notice which read....’ The guy namely this, class this, roll number this was found being harsh and unkind to this and this fresher, therefore his ten E.C marks are deducted”. He said that he was elated, heaved a sigh of relief but today only he came to know that E.C means “extra co-curricular activities” and of course, those marks count nowhere !!!

Finally I spotted a bus coming and stepped in. Their disturbed moods irked me. I said to myself, if in an institute for higher education such mindless acts take place, what is expected of uneducated people? Their saying that they are greeted with third class abuses and teases, because of which a weak hearted friend of theirs decided to quit the course, even after depositing the fee for it, sprang anger in me. I could not believe myself. If educated youth behave so vulgarly, then what purpose does education serve, except for being a license to a job.
I was lost in these thoughts and one more memory stuck in. There is this friend of mine who qualified JKCET and got an admission in the very famous medical college , Srinagar. The other day, she broke down on a senior guy’s remarks who had told her that there is no need to wear a head-gear (scarf) when tomorrow she would elope with someone. How indecent a remark and much poorer the mindset that made him talk such for a person whom he never saw before ! Invasion of liberty, curbing of independence, subjugation, mental torture....we just have a word to define this torture.

My disturbed mind recalled a number of disgusting remarks and provocative words, related to me by my friends in various colleges and the university also. I very well remember that my next door neighbour, who studies in an engineering college, here in the valley, was admitted in hospital after he tried to protest against stripping off his friend on their college campus. Pity. Sheer pity!! We are the people who talk of wrong politics, corruption, our rights as humans; as students, but when we are given a flash of power we become wild beasts! How could the same students turn so hostile to the newcomers, when once...say a year or two back they were standing in their shoes or may be it is just exacting revenge on the poor juniors of what was done to them, some time back.

The whole concept of ragging is inhuman and the worst example of madness in the young community. The same idea of interacting with freshers can be made friendly, hospitable and kind and I believe, that is what humans stand for and should always stand for. When we can’t put off this portrayal of violence and hostility in our lives, how can we dare dream of a better society or a beautiful world?

The bus rattled to last stop for a halt and I realised that I had gone very far in my thoughts and got down from the bus, made a U-turn on my shank’s pony, thanking God that I study in a less famous academic college not in the one famous for this infamous act of ragging.

[GK] Senior Junior harmony

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SYED TANIA ANDRABI

“Seniors”-a term evoking mixed feelings: people ahead of you, your elders, demanding your respect, seeking your attention; but more than that, people who have been there before you, whose advice, love, and wise counsel helps and guides you, and when they leave the place, they leave with some memories unforgettable.

Seniors- ‘people to whom the juniors’ are seen hawking to for the previous years notes, or asking about the pattern of questioning of a particular teacher, or topics of importance and topics to overlook, or how to flatter a teacher, or what books to consult – they are the junior’s second teachers to everything.

Seeking admission in the University of Kashmir is a dream nourished by every student of our state, and so was it for me. It seems like yesterday – coming to this University and being ragged by the seniors’. Ragging as an interactive session between the seniors’ and the juniors’ wherein they get to know each other, blurring the line that separates them, is encouraging for the juniors’. However ragging also has an ugly side. There have been instances where the juniors’ have been maltreated by their seniors’ inasmuch that they stopped attending their classes and in the most extreme cases, committed suicide. Such incidents, instead of generating a comfort level between the two parties, initiate a fear psychosis in the juniors’. What needs to be understood is that the attitude of seniors’ in shaping the juniors’ is profound. They, on one hand can give direction, awareness, information, and knowledge to their juniors’, but on the other hand, can misguide them as well.

Bisma, a post-graduate student of English department on being asked if she was ragged by her seniors said, ‘‘I was so nervous that I could not utter a single word except for my name, but this did not irritate my seniors’, and instead they let me go. My seniors’ are really very helpful, and I in was helpful to my juniors’.”

Help and a few words of encouragement is what the junior’s need, but they don’t always get it. Here I can mention the experience opposite to it. A student from another department narrated his harrowing experience with his senior’s while being ragged by them. ‘‘After receiving a slap from one of my seniors’ on the very first day I joined my department I didn’t attend my classes for almost 15 days, and even now, when many months have gone by since that incident occurred, I feel the same trepidation on seeing that guy as I felt on that day.” Another student Muzaffer puts in, ‘‘I was made to do things that I was not comfortable doing, but had to do, for fear of the seniors’.”

Incidents such as these instead of bridging the gap between the seniors’ and juniors’ increase the rift between them. But there have been instances of good friends being made after an exchange of violence. Says Ishfaq, ‘‘When I refused to do what my seniors’ were asking me to do, I received two tight slaps from one of my seniors’. But now that guy has become my friend and he is the only one among my seniors who helps me whenever I need some guidance. Maybe the juniors’ should understand that it is their duty to respect the seniors.”

Respecting the seniors’ is what the juniors’ really need to understand and accept. After all it is the seniors’ whose guidance is something the juniors’ can’t do without. They teach the juniors’ how to bear the increasing pressures of the teachers’, a pressure that burns chunks of coals into diamonds. They inspire their junior’s by their aims and aspirations. After all it is with the seniors’ that the juniors’ have fun, share joys and sorrows – perhaps the most memorable days of their lives…..

Let juniors and seniors experience the joy of studying together. No need to be antagonistic. Joining hands will ensure a harmonious relation which lasts for good. Even if you are not physically together but you are bonded by some moments you love to remember. So why hate, why rag why not be friends.

(Syed Tania Andrabi is Second Semester student of Media Education Research Centre(MERC), University of Kashmir. She can be mailed at tania.andrabi@gmail.com)

[GK] KU wears festive look as freshers arrive

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MIR FAHEEM ASLAM
Srinagar, Apr 13: With the classwork for new entrants in different postgraduate courses about to begin in the Kashmir University, the campus wears a festive look these days. While freshers are seen busy in completing the admission formalities in their concerned departments, their seniors are busy in trying to corner them for introduction. “They (seniors) told me to introduce myself along with the family background,” said Zaffar, a fresher at the Political Science department. “The next day, I was cornered by all seniors and asked to sing a Kashmiri song.”

Zaffar is seconded by scores of other freshers as well. “I was asked to introduce myself in Kashmiri. And when I fumbled, the seniors asked to imitate a fisherwomen,” said Sana (name changed), a fresher from the Sociology department.

The seniors from some departments have also planned to organize special sessions for their freshers where they intend to seek a “comprehensive introduction” from the newcomers. “Once the classwork will begin, we are planning to call all our juniors to one spot and seek their introduction,” said Wahid, a final year student at the Media Education and Research Centre (MERC). “Meeting together is the only way we come to know each other.”

Pertinently, the university’s Naseem Bagh-which wears a festive look with the onset of spring-is playing a host to such events. The seniors and juniors are seen together in big groups, introducing each other amid sipping tea and soft drinks. “We don’t do any ragging here. It’s just an introduction,” a group of seniors from Law Department said. “We simply ask them (juniors) to introduce themselves completely; we don’t ask them to perform any vulgar acts.”
However, newcomers from some departments allege the seniors are “harsh” to them and “resort to ragging.”

“We were asked to measure the ground with a 25 paisa coin,” some freshers told Greater Kashmir. “We have no problem in introducing ourselves but it’s unfair when our seniors ask us to act like fisherwomen,” they added.

Though the varsity’s proctorial wing has not received any complaints of ragging so far, the officials have already geared up to anti-ragging campaign, if any. “We have already pasted some posters inside the university which carry the phone numbers of officials of the proctorial wing. If any student is harassed, we’ll initiate action against him,” an official at the Chief Proctor’s office said.

Bhaderwah girl tortured during ragging in GMC Jammu

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GK NEWS SERVICE
Jammu, Feb 26: A first year student of physiotherapy was subjected to intense ragging by about dozen seniors in Girl’s hostel of Government Medical College (GMC) here Sunday night.
GMC principal Dr Mumtaz Goni has constituted a committee to look into the matter but has denied that the girl was ragged by her seniors.

Sources said the first year female student, who hailed from Bhaderwah, had come to hostel room number 135 last evening at around 4 PM and took her dinner at 8’O clock. Sources said, the seniors dragged the girl and thrashed her till 11.30 PM. The girl suffered bruises and soft tissue injuries on her body.

The ragging was so intense that she felt unconscious, sources said, adding she even yelled for help but none came to her rescue. When she regained consciousness she informed her parents.
Sources said, though no FIR has been lodged at Bakshi Nagar police station in absence of medico-legal case yet, SP City Sanjay Kotwal has asked the College Principal to take action against culprits.

College principal Dr Goni said, “a committee has been constituted to look into the matter that will submit its report within a week.”