Form of words:
Guwahati: Days after the Gauhati High Court granted bail to 21-year-old rape accused and IIT student Utsav Kadam, and They were called the “future assets” of the state.The survivor, a fellow student at IIT Guwahati, said she felt “alone” and as if she had been shifted to “shore”. In March this year, the third year IIT student was allegedly raped by her senior Kadam in college.
The rape victim’s statement comes in the backdrop of a Gauhati High Court order granting bail to Kadam, observing that there was “a clear prima facie” case against her. Underlining that the investigation in the case has been completed and the continued custody of the accused “may not be necessary”, Justice Ajit Borthakur had on August 13 observed that “both the informer/victim girl and the accused are the future assets of the State, Those who are talented students.Technical courses in IIT,Guwahati, who are young only in the age group of 19 to 21 years.
Ever since the bail order came, the victim said that she has been getting messages and seeing social media posts to see how it is justified. “I feel threatened that as soon as he came out, people thought he was innocent, just because he got bail. I feel lonely, I feel like I’m on edge,” she said.
“IIT does not define you. It gives you opportunities, but not intelligence,” she said. “Being a student here does not ensure that you will be an asset of the future. I am also an IITian.”
The alleged rape took place on the night of March 28, when the victim, then a second year student, allegedly lay in an unconscious state outside her hostel for nearly two hours before she was found by other students. According to a report by the Institute’s Internal Complaints Committee (ICC), his condition remained critical and was later taken to the Guwahati Medical College and Hospital, where he underwent treatment for a week.
“When I was in the hospital, unable to walk, my college students were sharing my identity. They used to call me a pseudo feminist, that I wanted attention and wanted to destroy his (Kadam’s) career,” she told ThePrint over the phone.
After being released from the hospital, the survivor said that she also underwent treatment with the support of her college authorities. But alleged that there was a limit to the support he got from them. “I thought the Chhatra Gymkhana Samiti (a student union) would stand by me, but they are not.”
The victim claimed that the alleged rape was preceded by “ragging” by the accused, which she continued to ignore as she alleged that “ragging culture is very prevalent in IITs”.
ThePrint reached out to the director of IIT Guwahati, TG Sitharaman, over the phone, but he declined to comment, saying the matter was sub-judice.
Read also: PhD scholar expelled from IIT Guwahati says it’s on corruption claims, university calls it a lie
‘Hopefully he will be convicted’
“Actually, no one really cares,” said Brijesh Rai, former assistant professor in IIT-G’s department of electronics and electrical engineering.
“There is not much accountability. A lot of things keep happening… Nobody cares,” said Rai, who taught at IITs for a decade till January 2020.
In December 2014, the then Dean of Academic Affairs, IIT-G, Alok Kumar Ghoshal, was Arrested for allegedly raping a staff member. Presently he is out on bail.
Besides Kadam, three students have also been made accused in the March incident. The ICC report recommended “expulsion of one academic semester with immediate effect, expulsion from hostel for one year and payment of an amount of ₹50,000 to each victim” for all three. The ICC also endorsed “suspended expulsion if sexual abuse is proven by court”. The report did not say anything about Kadam as he is facing trial in court. The other three accused are not facing legal proceedings.
Meanwhile, for Survivor, justice is an uphill battle.
“I am just waiting for the verdict and hope that he (Kadam) will be convicted. Some of my friends have broken up with me. The people who came to me at the hospital were allegedly threatened by the seniors… They kept asking if I woke up, what had I said. Eventually, people stopped meeting me,” she claimed.
According to the High Court order, Kadam’s counsel, seeking bail for him, said that he is “a young man of about 21 years of age and a brilliant student of B.Tech pre-final year of the Indian Institute of Technology (‘IIT’). student. Short), Guwahati in Chemical Engineering”.
The lawyer also pointed out that Kadam has already spent around 120 days in judicial custody and the investigation in the case has been completed.
(Edited by Polomi Banerjee)
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