Sumit Chauhan, a third-year Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Hindi (Honours), alleged that he was mercilessly physically, mentally, and verbally harassed by Professor Arun Kumar Attree, Principal of Shaheed Bhagat Singh College.
These allegations resulted in Sumit gaining support from other students, Delhi University's All India Student Association (AISA), the Students' Federation of India (SFI), Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) and others, who, in unison, are now demanding the arrest of Prof Attree.
The allegations made by the student are:
1. Castetist slurs and harassment used against him by the principal
2. Threats of removal from college issued
3. Forced to accept accusations despite no fault of his
4. Mental agony and disturbance due to the incident
5. Violation of his privacy as his phone and WhatsApp was checked
The opening of the can of worms
On October 24, Sumit recieved a spam-like WhatsApp message from his classmate. Concerned, he lent his assistance so that they could identify the problem.
"It was understood that his WhatsApp was hacked," Sumit explained. But little did Sumit know that he was opening a can of worms.
His classmates penned a letter to the principal so that the matter could be investigated, in the light of recurring incidents of mobile phones being hacked, and to ensure that it doesn't happen again. Turns out this was a huge menace that was plaguing several students of the college and certainly, was not the first time this it had happened. Hence, alarmed, students decided to seek help via the letter.
Following this, a committee was formed by the principal, and Sumit was allegedly called for an inquiry.
Sumit claims that he cooperated with the probe and gave his phone for inquiry however, in turn, his privacy was violated. "The committee checked my phone more thoroughly than other students'. After which, they started to force me to accept that I was the hacker," Sumit told EdexLive. He further claimed that the committee had found suspicious data on his phone, which made them all the more distrustful of Sumit.
After supposedly grilling him for over four hours, and upon his refusal to accept the said accusations, he was taken to the principal's office, where he was physically assaulted, he claims.
"Prof Attree was also accusing me of being the hacker. However, I denied the accusations. The principal hurled abusive words, conducted a lie-detector test, and physically assaulted me by slapping and beating me up," Sumit claims.
"I cannot even put into words the mental agony I was going through," he grieved. The principal also allegedly asked him to not disclose his caste to others.
Casteist slurs
Reiterating that he was not at fault and claiming that he was assaulted, he lodged an FIR (First Investigation Report) on October 26 at Malviya Nagar Police Station. In the complaint, he mentioned the names of Principal Arun Kumar Attree, Professors Naman Jain, Saurav, and Ashish as those responsible if anything were to happen to him. Professors Saurav and Ashish are professors at the SBSC college.
"Unable to bear the humiliation, I considered dying by suicide but being mindful of my family, I did not take any untoward step. I come from a financially marginalised background," he told EdexLive.
When he returned to the college after the Diwali holidays on November 4, he noticed the change in the behaviour of professors and students, who were looking at Sumit as the culprit. This added to the humiliation he faced at the hands of the principal and the probe.
Additionally, Sumit even filed a complaint with the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) and the Vice-Chancellor of Delhi University, Prof Yogesh Singh on November 13. According to the screenshots of the emails, which EdexLive has access to, NCSC has registered a complaint and issued notices to the concerned authorities.
AISA enters
After becoming aware of the incident, AISA lent their support to him. AISA launched protests on November 18, and they gheraoed the Malviya Nagar police station, urging the officials to lodge an FIR.
"On November 18, I was made aware that the FIR lodged earlier has been closed," Sumit claimed. Raising objections, he said, "How can they close an FIR without investigating the matter?"
Anjali, Delhi University's AISA Secretary, told EdexLive, "By Monday, November 23, the police assured us an FIR will be lodged. Failing to do so, we will escalate our demonstration and will not let the movement die until an FIR is lodged and action is taken."
Further, she emphasised that more students will join their protest and intensify the movement if their demands are unmet.
Principal reacts
Speaking to IANS on November 21, Principal Professor Arun Kumar Attree refuted the allegations of using casteist slurs and stated that a professor, who is being probed regarding a fake question paper matter, had provoked the student to launch complaints and make fake allegations against Prof Attree.
Furthermore, he said that initially, Sumit accepted that he was at fault but later, point-blank denied it when he realised he would have to face serious consequences.
"Why are they not checking the CCTV footage in the principal's room? It is the audio and video testament of my assault," pointed out Sumit. Further, the student demanded that the officials check the IP (Internet Protocol) address to identify the actual culprit rather than blame an innocent student like him.
