Kottayam Ragging Horror: 4 more complaints filed, 5 accused banned from studies
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Five arrested nursing students from Govt. Nursing College, Kottayam, permanently banned from studies.
Kottayam: The further studies of the five third-year nursing students arrested for ragging a first-year student at the state-run Nursing College hostel in Kottayam have been halted. The Nursing Council took this decision on Saturday and informed the Health Department and the State Government. As a result, the accused will no longer be able to pursue education in any college in Kerala.
Meanwhile, four more complaints from junior students were registered on Saturday. The Kerala Police probe team raided the hostel and recovered crucial evidence, including materials used by the accused to inflict injuries on the victim.
The institution’s Principal, A.T. Suleka, and Assistant Professor Ajeesh P. Mani have been suspended. Additionally, the hostel housekeeper and security official, both employed on a contract basis, have been dismissed from service.
Kottayam legislator and former State Home Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan has demanded that the case be monitored by the court.
State BJP president K. Surendran accused the CPI-M’s student wing, SFI, of leading the ragging incident. He announced that BJP workers would initiate an anti-ragging campaign and establish help desks in all 14 districts, starting with Kottayam.
"The reports reveal that these activities conducted by SFI activists are worse than those of terror organisations. SFI has turned into an anti-social organisation. The CM Vijayan government and the CPI-M are protecting them, which is why previous ragging cases never reach a logical conclusion, and SFI members evade the law. We will set up an anti-ragging help desk where anyone can fearlessly report such incidents," said Surendran.
The arrested third-year students, Rahul Raj, NS Jeeva, N.P. Vivek, Rigil Jeeth, and Samuel Johnson, were taken into custody on February 11 after the victim lodged a police complaint. They were later remanded to judicial custody.
Shocking visuals of the brutal assault aired on Malayalam TV channels have sparked widespread outrage. The footage shows the victim tied to a bed while senior students laugh and make lewd comments. A heavy object was placed on the victim’s private parts, and he was injured with a compass.
The college authorities' role has come under scrutiny, as they claimed ignorance of the incident. Reports suggest that first-year students were threatened with severe consequences if they spoke out. Investigations have revealed that the accused were engaging in ragging as a means to extort money for purchasing drugs and liquor.
Despite allegations linking SFI to the incident, its state secretary, P.M. Arsho, dismissed the claims, asserting that no SFI activists were involved.
With IANS inputs