CHANDIGARH: After the death of a 19-year-old student of Government Degree College, Dharamsala, the Himachal Pradesh Police have registered a case against a college professor and three women students on charges of ragging, physical assault and sexual misconduct.
The deceased, Pallavi, was a second-year student at the college. In a complaint to the police, her father Vikram Kumar alleged that on September 18 last year, three students of the same college, Harshita, Aakriti and Komolika, had intimidated and physically assaulted his daughter. He further alleged that a professor, Ashok Kumar, subjected Pallavi to obscene acts.
Kumar, a resident of Sidhbari in Dharamsala, told the police that following the alleged harassment and intimidation, his daughter became mentally disturbed, leading to a sharp deterioration in her health. She was initially treated at several hospitals across the state. As her condition worsened, she was referred to Dayanand Medical College and Hospital in Ludhiana, where she died during treatment on December 26.
Sources said Kumar told the police that he could not lodge a complaint earlier as his daughter remained critically ill and traumatised for a prolonged period. The family was also in deep shock following her death.
An FIR has been registered at the Dharamsala police station under Sections 75, 115(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), along with Section 3 of the Himachal Pradesh Educational Institutions (Prohibition of Ragging) Act, 2009, against professor Ashok Kumar and the three students.
Police officials said the case was registered after examining the complaint and conducting a preliminary inquiry. “Only after a detailed investigation will it be clear whether the allegations of ragging, physical assault, intimidation and sexual misconduct had any link to the deterioration of Pallavi’s health and her subsequent death,” a police official said.
Statements of Pallavi’s classmates, teachers, college authorities and family members will be recorded during the investigation. Medical records from all hospitals where she was treated, including Dayanand Medical College, Ludhiana, are also being collected to ascertain the cause of death and establish any possible link to the alleged incidents.
A senior police official said the probe is ongoing and all aspects of the case will be investigated thoroughly and impartially.