Panel formed to probe into JU student ‘harassment’

PTI Updated: July 29, 2024 22:38 IST
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Kolkata, Jul 29 (PTI) Jadavpur University formed a four-member inquiry committee on Monday, a week after a student suffered a panic attack after being allegedly questioned by a group of students over a missing laptop, a varsity official said.
    The first-year post-graduate computer science student, who was admitted to a hospital on Wednesday night, has since been discharged.
    At an executive committee meeting attended by the vice-chancellor and the registrar, it was decided to form the panel comprising two university representatives and one medical and one legal expert each from outside.
    The official said that the probe panel will find out if the student was threatened or harassed by his hostel mates on July 25 and what led to the panic attack of the victim requiring hospitalisation.
    The committee will also investigate the statement by Medical Superintendent Mitali Deb that she was asked by a section of hostel boarders to give a written undertaking when she wanted to take the student to a local hospital after finding him traumatised on July 25 night at the men's hostel.
    Ruling out ragging, the university administration earlier said the student was not beaten up and it was a case of misunderstanding.
    "It was not a case of ragging. The student suffered panic attack on being accosted by some other hostel mates. The laptop was recovered from the hostel. But I am unhappy the way some of them prevented me from taking him to hospital initially and relented when I stood my ground,” Deb had said.
    The JU official said it was decided at the meeting to tighten the security of the Medical Superintendent if such cases occur in future.
    In August last year, a 17-year-old first-year JU student died after falling off a balcony of the main hostel, after being ragged and allegedly sexually abused.
    A total of 13 persons — including current and former students — were arrested in connection with the case.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)