Another ragging incident in an educational institute. Two students of Binayak Acharya Government College were arrested by the Badabazar police in Berhampur, Odisha for ragging and harassing a junior girl.
The arrested students Abhishek Nahak (24) and Bablu Panda (18) are from Haridakhandi area in Berhampur. The police stated that Nahak is a final-year student and Panda is in the first year of graduation. Three other Plus II students, who are minors, have been detained for questioning with regards to the same allegation. The students allegedly ragged and harassed a Plus II first-year girl, stated a report by The New Indian Express.
A video of the girl being harassed by the accused students went viral on social media after which the police took action against these students. Berhampur Superintendent Sarvana Vivek M stated that the police started the investigation based on the video clip on social media and identified the college campus. A case was registered by the Badabazar police and initially, the investigation revealed that the main accused was Abhishek Nahak and started questioning him. "We have recommended the college authorities to rusticate the duo," he informed, stated The New Indian Express report.
The Superintendent further informed that the video revealed that five students were ragging and harassing the victim. While two of the students were majors, the other three were minors. The police have also urged the college administration to take disciplinary action against the minor students.
The Superintendent also stated that, “Every educational institution should have an internal anti-ragging cell comprising senior male and female teachers. The cell should educate the new batch of students about the anti-ragging mechanism." He also exhorted students, parents and teachers to dial 112 and report ragging over the phone. "They can also report in the nearest police station if the institutional anti-ragging cell does not respond properly,” he stated.
Recent incidents of ragging in other educational institutes
Seven students were suspended from Vir Chandra Singh Garhwali Government Institute of Medical Science and Research (VCSG Medical College), located in Uttarakhand's Srinagar, for being involved in a ragging incident.
In another instance, a student from ICFAI Business School, Hyderabad was assaulted, harassed and threatened by a group of 10-15 seniors in his hostel room.
The body of a third-year student at IIT Kharagpur was found in his hostel room. It was later revealed from a social media post that the death of this student could be because of ragging.
Tamil Nadu Medical University sought a report from Christina Medical College (CMC), Vellore on the ragging incident of first-year MBBS students after a video was circulated on social media where male students were made to walk in their underwear and water was being sprayed on them from a building.
