The death of a 19-year-old Dalit student who died by suicide at the Merchant Homoeopathic Medical College & Hospital in Gujarat has raised a myriad of concerning questions about how caste remains a significant issue in the country.
This should not overshadow the worrying rise in student suicides across India, which is a disturbingly prevalent topic. Many of these cases share similar issues, primarily that college administrations do not take action in a timely manner and often dismiss student concerns, even when raised through official channels.
What Happened With The Student?
On 29 January, a 19-year-old first-year student of Bachelor of Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery (BHMS) at the Merchant Homeopathic Medical College in Gujarat’s Mehsana died by suicide.
Soon after, four professors—Professor of Homoeopathic Materia Medica Vipakshi Suresh Rao Wasnik, Professor of Medicine Prashant Chandmalji Nuval, Professor of Pharmacy Y. Chandra Bose, and Professor of Physiology Sanjay Rithe—and the principal of the college, Kailash Jinga Patil, were booked after the police found a suicide note in the student’s hostel room that listed their names.
They were booked under Sections 108 (abetment of suicide) and 54 (being present when an offence is committed) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and under Section 3(2)(v) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The student’s father, Pravin Shankar Shrimali, in his FIR against the individuals, claimed that his daughter’s harassment by these professors had been ongoing for almost two months. “She reportedly told him that the professors frequently insulted her, gave her excessive academic work, forced her to stand for long hours, and inappropriately touched her under various pretexts. Additionally, the principal of the college allegedly dismissed her grievances, stating that enduring such treatment was a part of education,” said the FIR.
The deceased’s father, aged 52 and an advocate, comes from the Nagvada village of Dasada taluka in Surendranagar.
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A few days after the suicide was reported, the police investigation revealed that the student had approached the college principal at least ten times regarding the harassment. Her father also confirmed this, stating that the deceased had repeatedly raised issues with the college principal about being harassed by four faculty members, but instead was scolded by the principal himself.
According to reports, the principal admonished the student, saying, “When you come to study, you have to bear all these things,” yet took no action against the professors. The FIR also reportedly claims that Sanjay Rithe, after hearing about the student’s complaint to the principal, told her that she must tolerate this behaviour if she wanted to continue studying at the college.
A student was quoted by TOI anonymously saying that even others who would interact with the deceased were targeted. They said, “When one of the professors saw me with the victim, he started harassing me too. I had to apologise and promise not to accompany her again.”
Apart from that, the deceased’s father, in his FIR, alleges that Vipakshi Suresh Rao Wasnik shouted at her and threatened to fail her in her exams, while Prashant Chandmalji Nuval harassed her in several different ways, from making her rewrite her journals three times to making her stand outside the classroom without any reason, and even touching her inappropriately.
According to the FIR, Nuval “punished her by making her stand in one place for over three hours, swearing at her, and touching her inappropriately.” Y Chandra Bose would also call her into the classroom alone and “make lewd comments,” as reported by The Print.
A ground report by The Print also claims that on the morning the victim died, she had called her cousin, asking him to take her to the doctor. However, in a second call, she told him that she “wasn’t getting permission to leave the college premises.”
A suicide note written by the victim said, “My suicide will help my friends,” and called her professors “Haivan (demon/cruel being)” and “Yamraj (god of death).”
A student speaking with The Print also claimed, “He (one of the professors named in the FIR) said, ‘Tumhari aukaad mein raha karo,’ when scolding her.”
The student’s close friend, Anjitha Patel, as reported by The Print, also recounted an incident where, almost a month ago, the victim, after being “pulled up by her professor in front of the entire class,” told Patel, “Following that incident, she said to me, ‘I want to commit suicide.’”
Patel also claimed that this was a common pattern where students faced bullying and harassment constantly since their enrolment.
The father speaking with TOI said, “My daughter always dreamt of becoming a doctor but had to settle for homeopathy. She was very industrious and good at her studies. For the past two months, she had been in distress. When I asked her the reason behind her grief, she said that she was constantly harassed.”
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: The Indian Express, The Print, TOI
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This post is tagged under: dalit student, dalit student suicide, student suicide, student suicide india, dalit student suicide india, dalit student homeopathy, homeopathy, Merchant Homoeopathic Medical College & Hospital, homeopathy student suicide
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