Ragging drives medical student to suicide
A First-year MBBS student of the Government Medical College committed suicide at his Amritsar residence on Sunday after being subjected to harsh ragging by his seniors.
A First-year MBBS student of the Government Medical College committed suicide at his Amritsar residence on Sunday after being subjected to harsh ragging by his seniors.
Manjot Singh consumed a poisonous substance. He was ranked 38th in the All-India Pre-Medical and Pre-Dental Examination.
Manjot's father Milap Singh told the Hindustan Times that his son seemed disturbed when he came home on August 3. "He was our only son. We have lost everything because his college officials were not strict about ragging," he said.
Manjot stayed in Room No. 419 at the boys' hostel in the medical college. His mother Paramjit Kaur said Manjot had told her about the ragging.
"Manjot knew we would coax him to go to college on Monday. He decided to end his life when nobody was at home," she said
Chief warden of the college hostels, Dr A.K. Janmeja said he was not aware of the incident, but that he would look into it. Acting principal-cum-director of GMCH, Dr Krishan Vij, said, he had not "received any complaint and action would be taken only after representation by the family."
Manjot's uncle Sarabjit Singh said they had not made a complaint to the authorities yet. "We would seek an inquiry," he said.
A classmate of Manjot said he attended class only for a day and seemed a serious person.
The Government Medical College in Sector 32 has a blanket ban on ragging. But students said it is not enforced in the classes and hostels. They said teachers encourage such interaction with seniors telling newcomers it will help them.
"Yesterday, the teacher left the class leaving first-year students at the mercy of the seniors. We are asked to bow, slap, propose or abuse our classmates," a first-year student, who did not want to be named, revealed.