19-yr-old death case in Dharamshala: Probe panel visits college, collects record from police

The four-member committee, headed by the additional director of education, has three principals as its members and has been asked to submit its report within three days to the education secretary

The probe committee constituted by the Himachal education department, after the death of a 19-year-old student of a government college in Dharamshala, visited the institute on Monday to talk with students and teachers, informed officials.

On Thursday, based on a complaint filed by the victim’s father, three students of the government college in Dharamshala were booked on charges of ragging while a professor was booked for sexual harassment. (File)

The four-member committee, headed by the additional director of education, has three principals as its members and has been asked to submit its report within three days to the education secretary. Officials said that the four-member panel talked to students and teachers about the matter. The committee also collected records from the police.

On Thursday, based on a complaint filed by the victim’s father, three students of the government college in Dharamshala were booked on charges of ragging while a professor was booked for sexual harassment. The father alleged that the accused “harassed and levelled casteist remarks” at his daughter, even as college authorities maintained that no ragging or sexual harassment complaint was submitted before her death.

The Himachal Pradesh Scheduled Castes Commission on Friday sought had a report on the death of 19-year-old girl.

The University Grants Commission had also taken (UGC) cognisance of the matter and formed a fact-finding committee. “The University Grants Commission has taken serious cognizance of the tragic incident at a Dharamsala college. It has been decided to constitute a fact-finding committee. UGC assures that culprits will not be spared, stringent action will follow. Student safety is paramount, ” UGC officials said in a statement

Based on a complaint filed by the victim’s father on December 31, a case under sections 75 (sexual harassment), 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 3 of Himachal Pradesh Educational Institution (Prohibition of) Ragging Act, 2009, was registered against the four accused on Thursday.

According to a statement released by the police on Thursday, “On September 18, 2025, three girls from the college had beaten and intimidated the victim and the college professor used to sexually harass her. Following these reasons, the victim was scared and became unwell. She was treated at different hospitals and on December 26, 2025, the victim died while undergoing treatment at DMC, Ludhiana.”

The members of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) on Monday also held a protest outside the deputy commissioner’s office in Dharamshala and demanded justice of the victim. The activists said the incident should be thoroughly investigated and those involved in this should be held accountable.