HP govt, UGC order separate probes into alleged ragging-linked death of 19-year-old Dalit student, promise strict action

Shimla (HP), Jan 3 (PTI) As outrage mounted over the suspected ragging-linked death of a 19-year-old Dalit student, Himachal Pradesh government on Saturday said it has set up an inquiry committee that will cover all aspects, including alleged sexual harassment by a professor and caste related abuse in college, with Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu promising strict action against the guilty.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) also set up a five-member fact-finding committee to investigate the incident related to the death of the student at the Government Degree College, Dharamshala, after the UGC Anti-Ragging Helpline registered a suo-motu complaint.

Sukhu said that "based on the video statement of the deceased woman in which she had named the professor, the accused professor would be immediately suspended".

"An inquiry... would be initiated against him and strict action would be taken against all those involved," the chief minister told reporters in Kandaghat in Solan district.

The woman died during treatment at a Ludhiana hospital. Three students of the college were booked for ragging and voluntarily causing hurt, while a professor was booked for sexual harassment on January 1, following her father's complaint.

"A four-member committee headed by Additional Director Higher Education Harish Kumar, with principals of Dhaliara, Baijnath and Naura government colleges as its members, has been constituted to conduct a fact-finding/preliminary enquiry in the unfortunate death of a student of government college Dharamshala," an order issued here by the Director of Education Amarjeet Sharma on Saturday said.

The committee would submit a comprehensive report in three days covering all aspects and angles of alleged harassment, sexual assault, ragging and caste related comments by the teachers and the students of the colleges, Sharma said.

A senior UGC official said they have taken serious note of the incident and the culprits will not be spared. "The UGC Anti-Ragging Helpline registered a suo-motu complaint based on media reports alleging ragging leading to suicide, while the college authorities have stated that the case is a death and not a suicide," the official said in Delhi.

"A police inquiry is underway, and the UGC has constituted a Fact-Finding Committee to examine the incident. UGC assures that culprits will not be spared and that stringent action will follow. Student safety is paramount," the official added.

In his complaint, the student's father alleged that his daughter was beaten by three seniors on September 18, 2025, while the college professor indulged in obscene acts with her. The accused professor has denied all allegations levelled against him.

The investigation in the case is being conducted by the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Dharamshala, and all relevant evidence, including medical records, video clips and statements of witnesses, are being collected, the Kangra police said in a statement on Saturday.

The investigation team has already reached Ludhiana to obtain the complete treatment records and to record statements of the medical professionals who treated the victim, it said.

"The statement of the victim's father is also proposed to be recorded before a Judicial Magistrate, so as to ensure that all aspects of the matter are thoroughly and impartially examined," the police added.

Meanwhile, members of the Ambedkar Mahasabha protested in Dharamshala on Saturday, demanding justice for the victim and strict action against the culprits.

Talking to the media persons, state president of All India Ambedkar Mahasabha and Zila Parishad member from Sulah assembly segment, Roop Rekha, said that she met with the family of the victim and alleged that the victim's hair was cut in the college campus and she was also hit with a bottle on her head.

"This is not a death from depression, but an attempt to murder, and the police are also responsible for the death as they failed to act in time. Moreover, sections of the SC/ST Act have not been included in the FIR," she alleged.

The issue shook the state following a video of the girl became public in which she accused the professor of harassing her, committing indecent acts, mental harassment and intimidation when she protested against his behaviour.

Due to the beating and harassment, the student was hospitalised. The father of the deceased woman alleged that following these incidents, his daughter went into severe mental stress and fear, leading to a rapid deterioration in her health, and she died during treatment, the complaint said.

A case under sections 75 (sexual harassment), 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 3 of the Himachal Pradesh Educational Institution (Prohibition of) Ragging Act 2009 has been registered and investigations are underway, the police said.

The police had maintained that a complaint was initially received through the Chief Minister's Sankalp Seva Helpline, but the student's statement could not be recorded as she was unwell at the time. The police later recorded the statement of the victim's father.

Preliminary investigations by the police pointed out that the student was enrolled in the college in 2024. She allegedly faced ragging by some students and failed her BA first-year examination. She subsequently stopped attending college after the results were declared in July 2025. Her name was struck off the college rolls on August 21, 2025.

The student is believed to have visited the college again in September seeking admission, where she was informed that she would be admitted to the second year only if she cleared the re-evaluation, failing which she would have to re-enrol in the first year.

The Himachal Scheduled Caste Commission has also sought a report in this regard from the Kangra Superintendent of Police. PTI BPL GJS RT RT