Indore: ‘Ragging victim’ claims cover-up bid by college

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): A student of the College of Agriculture, Indore, who had filed a complaint of ragging with the University Grants Commission (UGC) about 12 days ago, has claimed that his institute is trying to cover up the harassment incident that had happened to him.

UGC sources said the complainant contacted the Anti-Ragging Helpline of UGC and claimed his college authorities were trying to sweep the ragging incident under the carpet.

College dean Sharad Kumar Choudhary rubbished the claim and said they were probing the complaint. “According to our investigations, so far, some dispute took place between two groups of students. We saw the CCTV footage in which some students were seen arguing with each other. From the CCTV footage, it seems it was a brawl between two groups. However, we’re not ruling out the possibility of ragging,” he said.

According to information, a second-year student was ragged as he did not follow the dress code recommended by third-year students. A complainant of ragging had reached the UGC from the college on March 3. The UGC had directed the college to get the complaint probed and report back. The college had forwarded the complaint to the anti-ragging committee asking it to probe the matter.

The UGC had also spoken to the college dean and lab technician about the matter. More than 12 days have passed after the complaint was lodged, but the college could not complete its probe till now. Meanwhile, the complainant is in touch with UGC officials. He reportedly informed UGC officials that the college was not doing anything about his complaint.