NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear, on Monday, July 28, the suo motu cognizance (SMC) proceedings it initiated on July 21 over the recent student suicide deaths at IIT Kharagpur and Sharda University in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
The two-judge bench of the apex court, headed by Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice R Mahadevan, is expected to hear the SMC case on Monday. On July 21, before taking up the matter suo motu, the court had directed both institutions to submit their responses on the incidents.
The top court appointed senior advocate Aparna Bhatt as amicus curiae - the lawyer appointed to assist the SC in the case - and asked her to provide detailed information on the matter.
Acting on the directions of the top court, Bhatt said that in the Sharda University student suicide case, the girl’s body was moved by university staff before the police arrived. According to police officials, multiple people left fingerprints, compromising the crime scene.
The victim, Jyoti Sharma was a second-year BDS student who allegedly died by suicide in the hostel of Sharda University.
The court had earlier said that "something is wrong".
In the IIT Kharagpur case, Bhatt was informed by varsity's Registrar that though a post mortem was conducted details weren't known yet.
The case pertains to Ritam Mandal, a fourth-year mechanical engineering student at IIT Kharagpur, who allegedly died by suicide on July 18. A resident of Kolkata, she was enrolled in a five-year dual degree programme. This is the fourth such incident reported on the IIT Kharagpur campus since January this year.
In a significant judgement recently on July 25, the Supreme Court had issued 15 pan-India guidelines to combat the problems of rise in suicides, safety and mental health issues among students in educational institutions.
On July 25, the Supreme Court issued 15 nationwide guidelines to address rising student suicides and improve mental health and safety measures in educational institutions.
The Supreme Court's verdict came in response to an appeal challenging the Andhra Pradesh High Court’s rejection of a plea to transfer the probe into the suspicious death of a 17-year-old NEET aspirant in Visakhapatnam to the CBI.
The guidelines prescribed by the top court were: All educational institutions shall adopt and implement a uniform mental health policy, drawing cues from the UMMEED Draft Guidelines, the MANODARPAN initiative, and the National Suicide Prevention Strategy.
"All the educational institutions shall establish written protocols for immediate referral to mental health services, local hospitals, and suicide prevention helplines. Suicide helpline numbers, including Tele-MANAS and other national services, shall be prominently displayed in hostels, classrooms, common areas, and on websites in large and legible print," the Court said.
The apex court said that all residential-based institutions shall install tamper-proof ceiling fans or equivalent safety devices, and shall restrict access to rooftops, balconies, and other high-risk areas, in order to deter impulsive acts of self-harm.
"All coaching hubs, including but not limited to Jaipur, Kota, Sikar, Chennai, Hyderabad, Delhi, Mumbai, and other cities where students migrate in large numbers for competitive examination preparation, shall implement heightened mental health protections and preventive measures. These regions, having witnessed disproportionately high incidents of student suicides, require special attention.
“The concerned authorities, namely, the Department of Education, District Administration, and management educational institutions, shall ensure the provision of regular career counselling for students and parents," the Court said.