Hyderabad: There were more cases of ragging in educational institutions in Telangana in 2016 despite laws meant to discourage the practice. Three cases were registered with the Anti Ragging Helpline of the UGC in 2013, five cases in 2014 and 12 cases in 2016. Fifteen cases were registered from AP this year, and a total of 48 cases since 2014.
The complaints of ragging made to the anti-ragging helpline accessed by DC gives chilling details of how common the practice is in leading universities. In a complaint from JNTU received in September, a student said seniors made them simulate the sex act with the walls of the hostel and they were made to strip and dance. It may be recalled that on Wednesday, a first-year student had filed a complaint against two seniors for allegedly stripping and beating him.
Students of UoH say ragging is common among MCA students. A first-year student alleged in his complaint that fellow students are being harassed by seniors. He wrote, “This morning, there was a suicide in the university. My batch mates are scared.” It may be recalled that on September 17, 2016, a Master of Fine Arts student committed suicide in the campus.
This year three cases of ragging from Telangana were reported from Prathima Institute of Medical Sciences, Karimnagar. In one complaint received on November 22, the complainant alleged that the senior boys harass junior girls by following them everywhere. She also wrote, “Girls have to be concerned about security...senior boys see all girls as their property... now I'm thinking that coming here is the worst mistake in my life.”
When an anti-ragging committee of the medical institute constituted an inquiry, it found that there was no ragging. In all complaints the students said that they do not want their names to be revealed.
