Gujarat: Batchmates, senior booked for hitting medical college interns; 4 students suspended

NEW DELHI: Two interns of the Government Medical College in Gujarat's Bhavnagar were allegedly detained and assaulted by some of their batchmates and a senior over jokes shared by them on Instagram, police said Saturday. While two FIRs have been registered, the college treated the incidents as ragging and suspended four students with immediate effect, officials said. The two interns and one of their friends are hospitalised due to the assaults, said police.

In two separate complaints, the interns, Ishan Kotak and Aman Joshi, said the accused were also unhappy over their handling of convocation and sports activities in the medical college. Both alleged incidents took place on Friday. The interns said they were detained, assaulted and issued death threats by their batchmates and a senior, according to the FIR. Joshi alleged that four of his batchmates and a senior came to his hostel room late in the night and took him to another room where the accused slapped him several times, abused and threatened to kill him.

Sports decisions dispute

The complainant said they were unhappy because of certain decisions taken by him for the sports activities of the college. In his complaint, Kotak said he was asked to come out of his hostel room and meet four batchmates near the hostel. When he went there, he and his friend accompanying him were bundled into a vehicle, taken around and assaulted. Kotak said the accused were upset because of the jokes he had posted on an Instagram page created by them which was meant for “innocent” humour.

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Medical college calls it ragging

Two first information reports (FIRs) have been registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for wrongful confinement, intentionally causing hurt, intentionally insulting someone to provoke a breach of peace, and using obscene acts and language in a public place. Police said an investigation was underway and the accused were yet to be arrested. Dr Sushil Jha, dean of the medical college, said they treated the matter as ragging and took swift action. "The incident amounts to ragging. The 11-member anti-ragging committee of the medical college met and decided to suspend four students with immediate effect and withhold their certificates. The committee will meet again next Saturday to take further action," he said.