Eight Nashik medical students punished for ragging

Eight Nashik medical students punished for ragging
RAKSHIT SONAWANE

NASHIK, JULY 30: Eight students of the medical college, run by the Maratha Vidya Prasarak Samaj, have been found guilty of ragging three girls.

the Maharashtra Prohibition of Ragging Act, 1999, is the president of the institution.

The names of the culprits included Advay Aher, Ashok Thorat, Pankaj Shende, Kundan Gosavi, Navneet Bhambra, Ranjeet Chhabra, Shiripal Shah, and Abhijit More. All are studying in the same college in the Third Year MBBS class.

Out of the eight accused, Advay Aher hails from Deola, the native-place of former health minister and currently the BJP MLA from Nashik Dr Daulatrao Aher and is said to be related to him. Dr Aher also happens to be the president of the Maratha Vidhya Prasarak Samaj which runs the college. As minister, he was instrumental in the passing of the Maharashtra Prohibition of Ragging Act (1999). Advay's name had figured twice in the past in incidents of intimidation and hooliganism in the college and the hostel.

Speaking to The Indian Express, college principal Dr G K Saran informed that the incident had occurred on July 22, when the three girls, studying in the First Year MBBS class, were ragged by the eight students of the Third Year.

The girls alongwith their parents filed written complaints and the matter was handed over to the Anti-Ragging Inquiry Committee of the college. The committee, headed by the principal, and comprising two senior teachers and three senior girl-students, investigated into the incident and found the eight students guilty of ragging the girls.

Consequently, a fine of Rs 1,000 each was imposed on all the eight accused and written apologies were demanded from them to be displayed on the college notice-board. The accused have been asked to pay the fine and submit their apologies by July 31.

Dr Saran said that the anti-ragging committee decided against rustication of the accused students as the offence was not found to be of a serious nature. He claimed that the parents of the victims also supported the committee's stand. Dr Saran informed that if the students failed to comply by the committee's orders, they might hand over the case to the police for further action.

According to Dr Aher's Maharashtra Prohibition of Ragging Act, ragging is a cognisable offence punishable with imprisonment upto two years with fine upto Rs 10,000 and/or rustication from the college.

Though Dr Saran categorically said that he was not under any pressure from the management, there was a lurking suspicion that proximity of Advay Aher to the former minister might have played a role in reduction of the punishment of the accused.