Ragging continues to be an issue ‘freshers’ have to deal with. A student of college in Moodbidri was locked inside the toilet for nearly one hour. “I did not mind for sometime, but I was angry later as nobody responded my cries for one full hour. I did not complain to the management but I had a big fight (with my tormentors)”.
Vikranth Moily, a student of a private college, was asked to gulp down a whole glass of hard liquor and simultaneously sing the ‘I am a Barbie girl’ song. He said, “Some seniors rag on juniors to show off and boost their image in front of others. I am completely against it. It can instil fear in juniors and only few take it lightly”.
Karthik Prabhu, student of Mangalore University said, “Usually, ragging does not take place in classrooms, but it takes place in hostels. In the beginning of the academic year, seniors had come to our hostel rooms in big number. They gave us some task to do. Few juniors were scared and others did what they were told to do with a smile. Ultimately it turned out to be the beginning of a long friendship”.
Some students, travelling from Kerala to Mangalore for studies, have experienced ragging on trains as well. Ranjith P. Kanhangad, a student of St. Aloysius College, was witness to one such incident. A student was asked to take off his shirt in the train; he was utterly embarrassed and was nearly in tears, he said.
Others are asked to mimic actors, forced to smoke, count the number of seats in the compartment, and so on. Indu Balakrishnan, another student who comes from Kerala to Mangalore, said, “I was once asked to pull the chain of the train. I did it. The train stopped and those who had asked me to do so disappeared. The railway police came to me to know the reason; I told them what had happened. They let me go with a warning,” she said with a sigh of relief.
Mangalore University Vice-Chancellor T.C. Shivashankara Murthy, however, says he has so far not come across any instance of ragging at the university. Mr. Murthy said the university has a separate Anti-Ragging Committee.
Mr. Murthy said he has been holding regular discussions with students. Students are free to meet me and discuss about affairs in the university, he says.
