Pallavi Dharamshala Ragging Case: The tragic death of a 19-year-old student from a Dharmshala college has triggered public debate about poor campus culture, ragging practices and mental health of young children.
What’s the Pallavi Dharamshala Ragging Case all about?
A student of a Government Degree College, Pallavi succumbed after being the victim of prolonged ragging, power abuse and no support from authorities.
Pallavi’s father remarked his daughter was constantly traumatized and fearful. He blamed sustained mistreatment on campus for the untimely death of his young daughter.
Himachal Pradesh Police has registered a case against three students and a college professor following a complaint by the father of the deceased girl. The FIR is filed under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Himachal Pradesh Educational Institutions (Prohibition of Ragging) Act, 2009.
The case has reminded people of the death of MBBS student Aman Kachroo in 2009 that resulted in strengthened anti-ragging laws in Himachal Pradesh.
According to campus safety experts, ragging laws exist but they don’t help much as enforcement often lags. This is primarily because of institutional reluctance to confront peer misconduct or internal faculty, insufficient counselling services and social pressures.
Calls for Independent Review
Student groups and parents associations in Dharmshala have demanded an urgent and independent inquiry panel. They want better campus mental health infrastructure and reporting channels for harassment. Many activists have urged that real-time monitoring of counselling cells and anti-ragging committees must be implemented by all institutions in the country instead of reactive post-incident investigations.
On social media, many users asked, “why has the lives of our young children became so cheap?”
