A First Information Report (FIR) has been filed by the police against 15 second-year MBBS students from a medical college in Gujarat’s Patan district after the death of an 18-year-old first-year student, allegedly because of ragging. As per officials, the victim Anil Methaniya has suffered mental as well as physical harassment during the incident, which took place on Saturday night in the college hostel.
All about the ragging incident
The alleged students forced Methaniya and ten other first-year students to stand in a hotel room for more than three hours for an ”introduction” session. The seniors during that period made the freshers perform acts like dancing, and singing and asked them to use abusive language. They didn’t even allow them to leave. Methaniya’s health worsened because of the prolonged mental and physical strain which led him to collapse around midnight. Though he was rushed to the hospital he was declared dead on arrival.
All the accused have been charged under various sections of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including wrongful confinement, unlawful assembly, usage of obscene words and culpable homicide not amounting to murder. As per the latest report, all 15 students have been suspended from the hostel as well from academic activities pending further investigation.
Investigation conducted by college committee
The anti-ragging committee of GMRES Medical College and Hospital, headed by Dean Dr. Hardik Shah has recorded statements from 26 students, of which 11 students are from the first year and 15 students are from the second year. The committee after talking with the students has confirmed that the accused group has subjected 11 juniors to ragging. Dr Shah has given assurance by giving full cooperation with the ongoing police investigation and has underlined the seriousness of the incident. A formal complaint has been filed by the additional Dean Dr Anil Bhathija resulting in the FIR at the Balisana police station. Authorities have pledged to take strict actions to ensure justice for the victim and take steps to prevent ragging cases in the future.
(With inputs from PTI)