SAMBALPUR: Fresh allegations of ragging have surfaced at Veer Surendra Sai University of Technology (VSSUT) in Burla, leading to disciplinary action against four senior students.
While the alleged ragging took place last month, it came to light recently after completion of inquiry by an independent fact-finding team.
Sources the incident involved a first-year Mechanical Engineering student who was allegedly stopped and pulled up by four second-year and third-year students over untied shoe laces and dress code, near the university gate last month.
Another fellow student witnessed the harassment and recorded the incident, which further led to a verbal altercation when the seniors confronted him. During the scuffle, the mobile phone used for recording was reportedly damaged.
After the first-year students lodged a complaint with the university authorities, the anti-ragging cell launched an investigation and initially found the accused students guilty, though the nature of incident was not considered to be as ragging. Subsequently, VSSUT vice-chancellor Prof Dipak Sahoo ordered formation of an independent fact-finding committee.
The committee, comprising Sambalpur sub-collector, an officer from Burla police station, a retired professor from Sambalpur University, and internal members of VSSUT, conducted a detailed probe into the matter.
Following the reinvestigation, the committee reportedly recommended imposing monetary penalty on the accused students to ensure that such acts are not repeated in the future. Sources said one of the accused is reportedly the son of a faculty member of the university.
Prof Sahu said, “The fact-finding team was constituted to maintain transparency in the inquiry process. While a penalty has been proposed by the committee, I am yet to receive the final report of the investigation.”
The incident sparked concerns after the local media highlighted it as a case of ragging, citing the university’s past record of similar incidents. However, the vice-chancellor refuted the allegation and said, “The claims have been blown out of proportion. The incident does not amount to ragging, but the inquiry was conducted with the same rigor as a ragging complaint to safeguard the students’ faith in the redressal mechanism.” He further claimed that this is the first such incident reported in the university since July last year.