Following the tragic death of the 17-year-old boy in Jadavpur University hostel, a lot of “pundits” have also arrived at the scene with the sole interest of political mudslinging. Of course many of the points raised are certainly genuine. They are absolutely correct in suggesting that “administrative complicity” has played a significant role behind the menace of Ragging which has led to the heart-shattering death of the boy. How can passout students continue to stay in hostels ? How can the senior students boldly dare to indulge in torturing junior newly-admitted ones in the name of “introduction” or “acclimatisation”. The unhindered continuation of this sadistic “culture” of ragging, despite full knowledge and supreme callousness of the concerned authorities, indeed provides direct proof of “administrative complicity”. So the higher-ups of Jadavpur University also deserve exemplary punishment for the death of the minor student. They have also rightly pointed out the attitude of the student activists who have prevented installation of CCTV cameras in the campus by citing flimsy excuses of “freedom”. Freedom in the campus means freedom to exercise mind and opinion on any issue (related to University nation or globe) without any fear of persecution from the authorities or the State.
But how can CCTV cameras be made “pariah” of sorts especially when it is related to security and law and order issues within the campus. After all, “freedom” doesn’t mean “go/act as you like” by absolute eradication of all laws and restrictions. Will those students dare to oppose CCTV cameras in Railway stations, Airports, road crossings or stadiums to mention just a few! Aren’t modern surveillance tools an indispensable part of the global society today. Is University campus a private property that “privacy” would get assaulted on installing CCTV cameras! So this ridiculous dictatorial attitude of the student activists indeed compels us to conclude that factors of “free” usage of drugs and engagement in illicit drinking after dark (along with all sorts of obscenities) form the main “inspiration” behind such staunch opposition to CCTV cameras. However, rest of their accusations are absolutely politically-motivated with clear vengeance towards West Bengal, state Government, TMC , Mamata Banerjee, Left, Ultra- Left along with character-assassination of the whole Jadavpur University student fraternity by painting all through the same brush of “Raggers”.
Is the menace of Ragging sole “monopoly” of West Bengal and Jadavpur University only that this particular state and University have been specifically targeted by them ! What about the IITs NITs and other Universities located outside West Bengal ! Has the devil named “Ragging” been exterminated there right from the root.
That the leaders and supporters of a particular ecosystem have still not succeeded in digesting the “pain” of the devastating result in the 2021 West Bengal Assembly polls is clearly evident when they ridiculously invoke the “No Vote to BJP” campaign in this context of Ragging! Even if is accepted, just for the sake of argument, that the slogan was indeed coined and zealously promoted by the “far Left” of Jadavpur University; still the “pundits” must introspect why it had caught the imagination of the masses and why all secular sane humanitarian citizens of Bengal collectively had responded to it, thereby shattering the dreams of “Occupy Bangal”.
Far from drawing any lesson from such a huge drubbing and stopping its communal antics in the secular land of Rabindranath Tagore-Kazi Nazrul Islam, they continue in their zealous attempt of communal polarisation in the state to reap electoral dividend prior to the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. And they are well aware of the fact that despite the presence of that devil crude section of “Raggers”, there also exists another Jadavpur that is sane secular humanitarian. This set of students are the real harbingers of sanity acting as the Conscience of the nation, always remaining in the forefront while protesting against communalism intolerance religion-specific citizenship laws or spine-chilling gangrape cum murders (as in Hathras) – – – currently plaguing this nation throughout its length and breadth.
It is high time the Bhakts, who are hell-bent on painting the whole Jadavpur University “black”, must be reminded that when their “idols” had announced instant lockdown with the poorest of poor finding themselves in dire straits, spending days and nights in starved stomachs without livelihood or engaged in “Long March” upon highways and collapsing to death with the leaders to the selfish privileged folks watching Ramayana, posting Dalgona (in social media) and banging pots and pans from balconies or celebrating pre-Diwali in April; innumerable Jadavpur university folks were pooling resources to set up temporary kitchens, cooking food and delivering it to the stranded starving poor languishing on the streets by relegating all virus-related fear to oblivion. The particular ecosystem must learn something about real nationalism from this set of Jadavpur fraternity. And also they must ask whether they have ever uttered a single word of protest when fellow human beings and Indian citizens get murdered cold-bloodedly by the cowvigilantes and “inventors” of the theory of “love jihad”. (The views expressed above are the author’s own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of Central Chronicle
