Ragging rears its ugly head in Chennai’s premier law school

CHENNAI: Twenty-one years after Tamil Nadu criminalized

ragging

following the gruesome murder of medical student Pon Navarasu, ragging in colleges — which continues as a ‘culture’ — has reared its ugly head, this time in Chennai.

Second year students from School of Excellence in Law (SOEL), a premier institution affiliated to Tamil Nadu Dr Ambedkar Law University, were attacked in an alleged incident of ragging by senior students.

One student, K K Prasanth, was assaulted and his shoulder dislocated in the incident that happened within the college premises, located in Perungudi near Taramani Railway Station, on Monday.

Injured second year students, who joined the school in July 2017, said ragging was prevalent at the institution for years and the authorities had hushed it up by threatening to suspend complainants and the perpetrators.

“Soon after we joined, an unofficial meeting was organised by the seniors at a barren land behind Taramani station outside the college. Seniors explained us the dos and don’ts,” said Kaushik Ram, a second year BCA LLB (Hons.) student. “While the members of the faculty advised us to follow the dress code (full-sleeved formal white shirts with black trousers and shoes), seniors told us in this meeting conducted after regular class hours not to follow the code. They humiliated us if we differed with them,” he said.

Junior students said they had to perform an ‘SOEL salute’ every time they saw a senior in the corridor. As per this ‘ritual’, a student should spread his legs, hold his crotch with the left hand, jump and salute with the other hand by shouting out his name and department. “I was beaten up by seniors when I refused to salute once,” said Manoj Kumar, another second year student.

Juniors said they were not allowed to talk to girls in the canteen or parking lots. Walking together in a group of three or more was forbidden and students who did were verbally abused.

V Rahul, a student from

Madurai

said, “I was told to walk barefoot after seniors found me wearing a pair of new shoes. The shoes went missing when I returned from the exam hall.”

There have been instances when students were forced to buy food and soft drinks for seniors from the college canteen, Rahul said. “We endured all this silently in the first year hoping that things would get better once we entered second year. But it worsened. We were continued to be harassed for not ragging the first year students,” he said.

Responding to the allegations, director of SOEL S Narayana Perumal said ragging complaints prior to August 20 were not brought to his knowledge. Perumal said a committee constituted to look into the present complaint would probe into other grievances too. “Action will be taken based on the committee’s findings,” he said.


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