Students take out rally protesting against Ragging at Jadavpur University. File.
| Photo Credit: Debasish Bhaduri
Almost a year after a 17-year-old student allegedly fell to his death after being ragged by Jadavpur University (JU) students and ex-students, the father of the victim continues to struggle in his quest for justice.
On the day the university organised an anti-ragging sensitisation session for professors on the campus, The Hindu spoke to Ramprasad Kundu, the victim’s father.
Last year, on August 9, the first-year student, a minor, jumped off from the hostel and died. Thirteen students were arrested in connection with the case that is being heard in the Calcutta High Court.
“I am alone. If I had lakhs to spend, I would have private lawyers to fight the case for my son. We are not that well-off. Only I know what I have lost. This pain will never go. I do not want another child to be lost from their parents,” Mr. Kundu said.
He said many of the perpetrators of the ragging incident have not been arrested. He said the 13 students who have been arrested have “good private lawyers to back them up”. “It has almost been a year. Media has lost interest in the case. No one talks about it anymore. I am helpless and fighting a lonely battle against big shot lawyers,” he said.
In the chargesheet filed by the Kolkata Police, sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act have been slapped against all 13 accused. They have been booked under multiple sections of the Indian Penal Code related to abetment to suicide and ragging.
During the talk at JU, chief guest, professor Gautam Bandhopadhyay, head of psychiatry, Calcutta Medical College, addressed the issue of ragging and said, “Students who have brilliance also have a streak of narcissism in them at times. This has adverse manifestations, sometimes in the form of ragging others and putting them down.”
Advising professors, he said, “When a student reaches out to you with any issue, first validate their feelings. This does not mean justifying their wrongdoings. But make them feel heard, try to identify the root cause and find logical solutions. Pay attention to the small details. Have empathy while speaking to students.”
JU pro vice-chancellor Amitava Datta said, “After the unfortunate incident of last year, all of us realised a lot of gaps in our own understanding of what goes on around us. Ragging has been here for years. People normalise it as seniors mingling with juniors. This needs to stop.” He said that people cannot call for a ragging-free campus only on pen-and-paper, everyone needs to take steps to make it real and called for participation from all stakeholders, including students and professors.
Addressing the talk, interim vice-chancellor of the university, professor Bhaskar Gupto, said, “Ragging is a social disease, not an individual problem. The students who perpetrate ragging mostly do it as a part of mob mentality. They would turn out to be very different people during personal conversations.”
Mr. Bandhopadhyay pointed out that sometimes staff and teachers have ended up with a social justification for such incidents of ragging and said, “This happens. It’s normal. Happened in our times as well. Or they fear repercussions and stay mum.”
The next hearing of the case is on July 23. Mr. Kundu remains hopeful that his lonely struggle for justice will succeed. “I still have faith in our law-and-order system. I want stringent punishment for all accused,” he said.
In a related development, the university on July 17 banned all non-boarders from staying at the hostels at night. Though this was the rule, it was violated quite often. Officials said if a student is found helping non-boarders stay at the hostel, their boarding may be cancelled.