A former Jadavpur University student was arrested for the death of 18-year-old undergraduate student Swapnadeep Kundu at the university’s main hostel. Sourav Chowdhury was produced before a city court on August 12 and remanded to police custody till August 22.
Chowdhury, who completed M.Sc. in Mathematics at the university in 2022, was staying at the main hostel and was allegedly present when Swapnadeep Kundu fell from the second floor of the hostel in the early hours of August 10.
Swapnadeep’s father Ramprasad Kundu had lodged a complaint at the Jadavpur Police Station, and a case under Sections 302 (murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code began. Mr. Ramprasad Kundu said that he had met Chowdhury at the hostel and the latter had assured that he would take care of the young student.
Meanwhile, allegations of ragging are coming to the fore, with some first year students alleging that seniors were directing them to not wear shorts and cut their hair. Parents and relatives of the deceased student have also alleged that ragging was responsible for the death. Questions are being raised on whether more students were involved in the alleged ragging.
Swapnadeep, a resident of Bagula in Nadia district, was admitted to the Bengali Department of the prestigious university, and had attended classes for three days before tragedy struck on August 10. He had made frantic calls to his parents late on August 9.
Former Vice Chancellor (V-C) of Jadavpur University, Abhijit Chakraborty, who stepped down following protests by students, said that he had taken various initiatives, including the installation of close circuit television (CCTV) cameras, and removing students who had completed their programmes from the hostels.
Students from the university have also taken out processions demanding ‘Justice for Swapnadeep’.
Despite the death of the student on the university campus, which has sent shock waves across the academic community, accountability cannot be fixed as Jadavpur University does not have a full-time Vice Chancellor.
Governor C.V. Ananda Bose had on June 1 entrusted Amitabha Datta, also Pro V-C of the university, with the responsibility of performing the duty of V-C.
None of the 31 State-run universities in West Bengal have full-term Vice Chancellors.
