Jadavpur University 1st-yr student dies after falling from hostel balcony; friend cries ragging

A first-year student of Jadavpur University in Kolkata died after allegedly falling from the second-floor balcony of the main hostel, police said on Thursday.

The 18-year-old boy Swarnodip Kundu, a resident of Bagula in Nadia district, was an undergraduate student of Bengali (honours). He allegedly fell from a hostel building around 11.45 pm on Wednesday, they said.

"He received multiple injuries and died at 4.30 am during treatment at the KPC Medical College," a police official said.

Classes for the first year began a couple of days back, as another student of that year alleged that ragging by a few seniors was behind his friend’s death.

Initial probe revealed that the boy called his mother at around 9 PM on Wednesday and expressed his fear "about something", a police officer said.

"His phone got switched off later. We are looking into his call list to find out whether he spoke to anyone else after that or not," the officer said, adding that they have examined the mobile phones of his roommates.

"We are waiting for the post-mortem examination report. That will help us in our investigation," he added.

JU Registrar Snehamanju Basu said in a communique to the Jadavpur police station said the said student was found on the road in front of the main hostel within the campus in unconscious and wounded condition "at 11 pm" and "despite every step taken for immediate and best possible treatment for him, he died at 6 am today."

On the allegation of Swapnodeep’s father that his son is a victim of ragging, the police officer said that they were talking to the in-charge of the hostel and also the students who have recently started staying there.

Meanwhile, another first-year student of Jadavpur University alleged in a Facebook post that ragging by “a few seniors” was behind the death of his friend Swapnodeep.

"My name is Arpan Majhi. I am a first-year student at Jadavpur University. My family is economically backward and I grew up in Asansol. Naturally, I applied for a hostel during admission. Spending two to three nights at the hostel was quite tormenting to me and because of that, I have started looking for a mess despite facing great difficulty, even if I have to take a loan," he wrote.

Referring to the ragging by a section of the senior boarders at the hostel, Majhi said, "I have heard many stories about the main hostel. Stories of them helping flood victims, standing by the side of helpless people during the Covid-19 pandemic. I believe most of the seniors in the main hostel carry this fighting tradition. But for a few of them, I lost my classmate," he alleged.

The JU chapter of the All Bengal University Teachers' Association (ABUTA) alleged that the varsity authorities did not take any step to stop ragging despite knowing about this practice.

Jadavpur University Teachers Association (JUTA) Secretary Partha Pratim Roy called for keeping new students in a separate hostel as per UGC rules and immediately driving out former students who had been living in the hostel illegally.

“We demand exemplary punishment for those responsible for his fate," Roy said.

Meanwhile, the boy's maternal uncle in a letter to the Registrar demanded a "proper, full-fledged inquiry into the incident".

Registrar Basu said the letter from the maternal uncle has been referred to the internal inquiry committee meeting of the university.