| Despite stringent rules stipulated a few years ago to make campuses ragging-free, the menace continues to be more of a norm than an exception in higher educational institutions across the country. Ragging is organised bullying, a tradition passed on from one batch to another. Gangs of seniors recklessly torture the vulnerable, powerless freshers, both physically and mentally. This ‘class struggle’ in the campus has seniors at the top, authorities in the middle, and freshers at the bottom.
College authorities either remain ignorant or turn into mute spectators without realising that their callousness puts lives of youngsters at grave risk.
The prevalence of ragging has declined drastically since 2012 when a nationwide toll free anti-ragging helpline 1800-180-5522 was set up by the University Grants Commission (UGC) following the Apex Court’s directive.
Over 5 per cent of higher education students have admitted to ragging, reveals an extensive survey conducted by the UGC in collaboration with the NGO Aman Movement in 2016. Small surveys done prior to 2009 indicated that roughly 40 per cent students faced ragging in colleges. The UGC’s anti- ragging helpline receives 450- 500 cases every year, reveals its latest annual report.
This clearly shows how our educational institutions and the government have failed to provide a safe learning environment for youngsters who are mostly in their teens, and lack courage and information to deal with the issue emotionally and legally.
As per UGC’s definition, teasing, treating a fresher or a junior student rudely, forcing them to perform something unusual, and indulging in rowdy activities, which cause hardship or psychological harm or raise fear in them, qualify as ragging.
Penal provisions and UGC Regulations On Curbing The Menace Of Ragging In Higher Educational Institutions, 2009, prescribe suspension, withholding scholarship, debarring from examination, withholding results, expulsion from the hostel and institution and consequent debarring from admission to any other institution for a specified period for the accused for any such act, depending upon the gravity of the crime. However, like other legislations, this piece of law is also poorly implemented as campus administrations seek to hush up the matter to keep their books clean.
In March this year, four students of Amity University, Noida, were booked for allegedly ragging and thrashing a second-year student on campus. In the FIR, the 20-year-old victim alleged that the four seniors had been harassing him for several days. The varsity officials, however, termed the issue as a “personal dispute”. They later counselled the students and said the matter had been “resolved”.
A Mumbai University student registered a plaint against two seniors at the national anti-ragging helpline in 2016. University officials found it to be a “non-ragging” case and later claimed to have resolved the matter “amicably”.
Very few cases lead to action as most cases are dubbed as “fake” by college authorities. Victims blame institutions for pressuring them to take back the plaints and ‘compromise’ with the seniors. Students, unless they have strong connections, usually give in to the authorities, fearing adverse impact on their careers.
Clearly, the government needs to act tougher with colleges that do not comply with the regulations. The Supreme Court monitoring committee must also check why most cases turn out to be “bogus”.
The writer is special correspondent with DNA |