Bengal Engineering and Science University suspends six students for ragging

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-03-23/kolkata/37960139_1_senior-students-besu-third-year-students 

KOLKATA: The Bengal Engineering and Science University on Friday suspended six third-year students after a group of juniors accused them of ragging. They have been asked to leave the campus and the hostel immediately.

 Governor M K Narayanan - the chancellor - had visited the prestigious campus only on Thursday. A complaint sent anonymously by some first-year students to the Besu professor in charge of student affairs said they were being asked to pay donations for an event organized by third-year seniors. By noon the complain reached Besu vice-chancellor A K Ray, who has set an example in the state by virtually eliminating ragging from the campus with his innovative ways of handling students.

An inquiry started immediately and the faculty members found the complaints to be true. "We have taken serious cognizance of the incident and have treated the matter as ragging. We suspended all the six senior students who were found to be guilty and have asked them to vacate their hostels till further orders. Another inquiry will be conducted," Ray told TOI.

 Some students and faculty members felt that this was not a clear case of ragging as the money was being collected for fun, in which the juniors would have been involved too. But the key factor was that the freshers were allegedly being forced to pay up.

 "We are not going to let our guard down when it comes to any kind of coercion. These senior students wanted to have fun purely at the expense of juniors and that cannot be tolerated," Ray said with finality. The governor had inaugurated a swimming pool and a six-storey building on Thursday.

Ragging? first-year student beaten up in Gurgaon

http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/Gurgaon/Ragging-first-year-student-beaten-up-in-Gurgaon/Article1-1029241.aspx

 In a suspected case of ragging, a first-year student of a private engineering college was allegedly assaulted and abandoned at a Bilaspur park in an unconscious state on Tuesday.

 The park is just a stone’s throw away from Gurgaon College of Engineering, where the victim is pursuing his mechanical engineering course. According to Tularam Gautam’s relatives, his seniors assaulted and forced him to consume liquor.

The 20-year-old is undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Gurgaon. He is a resident of Vijay Enclave in Delhi. However, the college management dismissed the claims of the family. Dr Yateendra Tiwari, director of the college, said, “We have formed an inquiry committee to probe the matter.

Ragging is not possible during exams.” Pradeep Singh, a relative of the victim, said, “A group of senior students forced Gautam to consume liquor.

There are injury marks all over his body. The incident took place during lunch break after the exam was over. It must be the handiwork of the seniors as there was no outsider on the campus.” The victim’s relatives claimed that his mobile phone and wallet were also missing. Rahul Sharma, DCP (south), said, “Although the victim has regained consciousness, we are yet to record his statement.”

Two law students held for ragging, assault

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/two-law-students-held-for-ragging-assault/article4504060.ece 

“Six men assaulted for refusal to comply with orders to dance and do sit-ups” Two law students have been arrested for allegedly ragging and thereafter assaulting and intimidating a first year student of Delhi University’s Campus Law Centre in Delhi last week.

 The victim alleged that six men had assaulted him following his refusal to comply with the orders of his seniors to dance and do sit-ups. Amit Kumar, a resident of Bhai Parmanand Colony, who is pursuing a Bachelor of Law degree at the Centre, alleged that the assault was a consequence of an argument he had with two of his seniors on March 7, the second day of the college’s annual fest which he was attending along with other fellow students.

 The victim had complained that it was there that two of his seniors, Chandan Kumar and Narendra Yadav (both students of second year in the same course), came to him and asked him to join them for a dancing session in the college ground. “I refused but they kept insisting and even forced me to join them. I did not relent and left for home,” said Amit.

 According to Amit, the following day while he was sitting outside his classroom with a few friends, Chandan and Narendra accompanied by several others reached there. They took the victim to a corner and ordered him to do sit-ups but once again, Amit refused to give in to their demands and tried to leave.

 “At this, Narendra and Chandan waylaid me and along with their accomplices started punching and kicking me. When they saw several others coming, they left but threatened everyone present there of dire consequences if they told anyone about the incident,” he said.

 Amit immediately made a call to the Police Control Room upon which several policemen reached the college. Amit also told the police that his wallet containing some money and important documents was missing since the incident. Based on his complaint, a case under sections 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt), 341(wrongful restraint), 379 (theft), 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) and 34 (common intention) was registered by the police against the accused.

 The victim said that since the incident took place on the last working day before the Centre’s mid-term vacations, due to which there were no classes for a week from March 10, he could not inform the college authorities.

 Both Chandan and Narendra were arrested from their house on Monday and were produced at a local court on Tuesday which sent them to judicial custody. Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Sindhu Pillai said the four other accused have also been identified and a search has been launched for them.

'Ragging' rears its ugly head

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-02-27/bhubaneswar/37330158_1_junior-students-hostel-roof-college-authorities-and-students

 BHUBANESWAR: A second year student of BSc agriculture of Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) brought allegations of ragging against his seniors on Tuesday.

Junior students gheraoed the office of dean (students' welfare) demanding action against the seniors. The varsity authorities, however, refuted the allegation of ragging and said it was a case of clash between two groups of students. Dean (students' welfare), R K Das said, "A disciplinary committee has started investigating the matter and the report will be submitted to the vice chancellor to take action against the guilty. But preliminary enquiry revealed that it was a clash between seniors and juniors."

 According to sources, first year students stay in Hostel no. 9 and from second year they stay with seniors in the hostels of the respective colleges. On Monday night, some third year students allegedly harassed and grilled second year students in Godaborisha hostel and later they assaulted a student. The victim has sustained serious injuries in his ear.

 The junior students have also lodged a complaint with police but no case has been registered. "The seniors said juniors must experience ragging and started grilling us followed by physical assault, which was intolerable," said a junior student requesting anonymity.

 "Some students came to lodge a complaint of clash but no case was registered as they did not inform the university authorities about it. We asked them to inform the varsity authorities first and if no action is taken, then we will register a case," said IIC of Khandagiri police station Sanjeev Satpathy.

 Recently, the Odisha Human Rights Commission (OHRC) ordered the vice chancellor of OUAT to give Rs 2 lakh compensation to the family of Siba Shankar Ash, a student who became bed-ridden after being ragged by seniors in 2006. Ash's father Satyajeet Ash moved the commission after his son could not recover from the multiple injuries sustained after he was allegedly pushed down from the hostel roof by some seniors.

To curb ragging in educational institutions, a state-level anti-ragging committee has been formed under the chairmanship of Governor and Chancellor of Universities M C Bhandare as per the direction of the Supreme Court.

All colleges were asked to circulate telephone numbers of district collectors, SPs and college authorities among students. Anti-ragging committees were also formed in all educational institutions and hostels. "The state-level committee would take strict action against the college authorities and students where incidents of ragging are reported," said a senior officer of higher education department.

Panel to probe reports of ragging at NIT

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/panel-to-probe-reports-of-ragging-at-nit/article4467931.ec

 The reports about ragging that allegedly took place at the girls’ hostel in National Institute of Technology (NIT), Warangal created a commotion here on Friday.

 It was reported that some junior girls staying at Sarojini Naidu hostel were summoned by the senior girls residing at New Ladies Hostel for ragging. The issue came to light when the security guards of the new ladies hostel spotted the junior girls coming out of the building. According to the rules, junior girls are barred from entering the new hostel and vice-versa.

 However, the junior girls reportedly said they went to the seniors only to get tips on engineering drawing. The officials, who took the matter seriously, said a committee would be constituted for an inquiry into the matter. The parents of the girls in question were also asked to come for the meeting scheduled on Monday.

 Dean (Academic Affairs) Prof N.V. Uma Maheswar said action would be initiated against the girls if they were found to be involved in ragging. Meanwhile, sources on the campus said neither the juniors who undergo ragging nor the seniors who resort to ragging usually reveal their identity for fear of further punishment. “In the preliminary enquiry, no evidence of ragging was found.

We will probe the matter and if any evidence comes up supporting the ragging version, we will take action against those involved,” the Dean said. Kazipet Circle Inspector S.A. Jabbar said that no case had been registered at the police station as no complaint had been filed.

Ragging slur on senior boarders - Varsity asks hostel girls to keep mum

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1130220/jsp/northeast/story_16583317.jsp#.UT9aOhz7Cvw

 Guwahati, Feb. 19: Gauhati University today shrugged off its responsibility of conducting a proper inquiry into a complaint of “mental torture” by some boarders of a girls’ hostel, dubbing the complaint as an “internal matter” of the university.

 Sources in the university said 15 boarders of AT 2 Law College Girls’ Hostel on Saturday filed a complaint to the association of the hotel wardens of the university alleging that their seniors had tortured them mentally the previous night. A source said the victims were reprimanded by their seniors for not giving enough time in organising Saraswati puja.

They were asked to keep standing for hours as punishment. The victims had refused to participate in organising the puja as they needed to prepare for their examinations. The university is yet to conduct an inquiry into the incident. When this correspondent contacted the university’s registrar Uttam Chandra Das, he said the issue was an “internal matter” of the university and they had “sorted it out”. “I cannot tell anything on it. It is our internal matter. We have sorted out the issue,” Das said.

 The warden of the hostel, Bina Lahkar, was not present at hostel when the incident took place. “It was a false allegation. The seniors and the junior students had a tussle on that night over maintaining some rules and regulations,” she said.

 The hostel has 60 boarders, including 35 juniors. According to some senior boarders, the hostel has “rules and traditions” like “praying, respecting seniors, organising puja” and “not to wear sleeveless dresses while they go to dining hall and outside the campus”. “It was not ragging. Hostels need to follow some rules. The girls who complained did not follow rules of the hostel.

We all worked for the puja, but they did not. So the puja was not properly arranged. Seniors had to decorate the gates,” said a senior boarder who was named as one of those who had tortured the complainants.

 Another source said the university, which desperately wants to hush up the incident fearing that its revelation would bring it a bad name, has asked the complainants to remain silent and not to speak anything especially to the media. “New boarders in the hostels of Gauhati University face ragging for up to one year. The university simply turns a blind eye and does not take steps to curb it,” the source said.

 Higher education commissioner H.K. Sarma said he was not aware of the incident. “If the incident has taken place then Gauhati University should take appropriate action,” he said. Advocate of Gauhati High Court Santanu Kumar Sarkar said many educational institutions do not take any action on ragging-related incidents considering them as internal matters. “It is not acceptable to take no action in such incidents terming them internal matters.

 It is seen that education institutions do not take action to prevent ragging. But when somebody dies they make a show of it,” he said.

Juniors 'stripped, abused' at Thanjavur engineering college

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-02-12/chennai/37057879_1_junior-students-college-authorities-police-complaint

 THANJAVUR: Four first year engineering students of PRIST University, Thanjavur have complained to the college and the UGC anti-ragging helpline that they were ragged by a group of seniors on Saturday. College dean H Wilson said the incident was prima facie a case of ragging and the college is in the process of filing a complaint with police.

 The dean told TOI that he has received a complaint of ragging on Monday from four first year students and that an inquiry committee has been constituted. "We will take necessary action," he said. According to anti-ragging rules, the college after receiving a complaint has to register a police complaint within 24 hours and constitute a committee which has to take action within seven days.

 First year students Ansul Raj, Ratandeep Kumar, Praseenjeet and Rajesh said six seniors called them for an "introduction session" at a rented place where the seniors lived. "They stripped us and verbally abused us for more than two hours," said one of the victims, who then made a call to one of his seniors. The senior, who did not want to be named, said he rushed to the spot. "My classmates were ragging the boys," he said. "But when I interfered, they threatened me.

Then I informed other students of my class and around 10 students arrived to settle the matter. They attacked us and forced us out of their house. Somehow, we managed to rescue the juniors," he said. Thanjavur deputy superintendent of police Shankar, however, had another version. The police officer said it was a case of assault and, in fact, the senior who purportedly rescued the juniors has been charged with assaulting the six students. The junior students, meanwhile, alleged that police did not register their complaint and forced them to sign a compromise letter.

Thanjavur superintendent of police T S Anbu said he would order an investigation once the college authorities filed a complaint. Meanwhile, the four junior students have approached the Society Against Violence Against Students (SAVE). Meera Kaura Patel, a Supreme Court lawyer and legal advisor of SAVE, said she spoke to the national anti-ragging cell which confirmed having received a call from the Thanjavur college students. A letter sent by SAVE, a copy of with which is with TOI, has requested the Madras high court chief justice to take suo motu cognizance of the matter.