Kolkata (West Bengal): Student leaders from Jadavpur University claimed that installing CCTV cameras on campus is not a one-stop solution to prevent incidents of ragging.
"CCTVs can only help in detecting who is the culprit. But CCTVs cannot help in stopping ragging," Subhodeep Bandyopadhyay, General Secretary of Kolkata SFI said.
Substantiating their claim, another student leader questioned how effectively the Panchayat polls were conducted under CCTV cameras if they could prevent or solve crime.
"Despite CCTVc violence took place during the West Bengal panchayat election. No arrests could be done based on their evidence. Nor can we say that the election was conducted in a just manner. The narrative on bringing in CCTVs in the campus is being brought in now just to deviate from the main issue," Aafrin Begum, state committee member of SFI said.
Stressing the need that ex-students should vacate the hostel, Aafrin said, "We have seen that many students who have passed out continue to stay in hostels. Even if authorities take action against them, they do not bother. Now after the incident hostellers are finally getting united against them."
Speaking to ANI on the steps taken to curb ragging, Aafrin said, "UG1 (Undergraduate first-year) students should be put in another hostel following UGC guildelines. The process has already begun. The list of pass-out students who are still staying in the hostel should be given to us."
Coming down heavily on the hostel supervisors, the student leader said, "Hostel supers (supervisors) have been kept on duty so that they can ensure that such kinds of incidents do not happen. How can they not know if a student falls down? How can they not know of incidents of ragging? How are they not aware of seniors who rag students? They (seniors) should be identified, interrogated and punished."
Negating the belief that ragging is a common practice at Jadavpur University, Aafrin said, "We do not believe that any organisation promotes ragging. We want all organisations in Jadavpur to get united against ragging. We are 98 per cent united that we will finish this. The two per cent are those who practice ragging, who frightens students to submit to ragging. We need to break those who want to keep this culture (of ragging) in the university. "
Adding further, Subhodeep Bandyopadhyay said, "It is not fair to blame the entire Jadavpur community for the incident of ragging. Ragging has become a culture for a few. However, we have stood against this ragging culture earlier and we will do so in the days to come. We do not believe that any union supports or promotes ragging. Those practising ragging are only a few individuals."
Earlier on Sunday, two more students were arrested in connection with the Jadavpur University student death case taking the total number of arrests to three.
A first-year student, Swarnodip Kundu, of Jadavpur University in Kolkata died on Thursday after allegedly falling from the balcony of the university's hostel on Wednesday night. Kundu, a first-year student of the Bengali Department, belonged to the state's Nadia district.
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