What is ragging?

Any disorderly conduct, whether spoken and written or an act which causes annoyance, hardship or psychological harm, giving rise to fear and shame in a student is called ragging.

Ragging often becomes an offence when there is a criminal conspiracy to rag, unlawful assembly and rioting while ragging, violation of decency and morals through injury to body, hurt, wrongful restraint and criminal intimidation.

The term ‘healthy ragging’, which had existed for sometime, doesn’t hold good any longer. It was once thought to be means of mingling with juniors and newcomers, but at present it has been recognized a systematic and sustained physical, mental and sexual abuse of fresh students of a college or University at the hands of senior students of the same institute and sometimes, even by outsiders.

 Two incidents of ragging, mainly one in North India and the other in South India have exposed the nation’s inability to stop such evils. The death of nineteen-year-old Aman Kachroo, at the hands of his seniors in the Rajendra Prasad Medical College in Tanda, Himachal Pradesh on March 8, 2009 raised disturbing questions about the seriousness of the college authority to following anti-ragging guidelines.

A study made by “Cure” revealed 14 cases of suicide by victims of ragging and 12 reported cases of serious mental torture between 1998 and 2007. In this decade alone, 198 incidents of ragging have been recorded from across the country.

Since the State government has failed to stop the menance of ragging despite several unsuccessful ordinances, laws and circulars to deal with it, the UGC had set up a 4-member committee in response to a public interest petition. One the basis of the report of this committee, the Supreme Court issued a set of directions in 2001. The Court, said that the police, while dealing with ragging cases shouldn’t treat students as criminals but should only resort to coercive action.

Some key features of the Supreme Court guidelines on ragging are:

1.  Immediate rustication of senior students who indulge in ragging

2. Departmental action against all heads of institutions where ragging has been reported

3.  High level security in hostel premises and a strict vigil over student activities in the initial days

4.  Freshers should be divided into small groups and should be placed under the supervision of individual teachers

5.  Police SHO or SP to be made responsible for any ragging that takes place under their jurisdiction.

How to stop ragging?

The menace of ragging could be solved in the following ways:

(i) Counselling students

(ii) Constituting anti-ragging cells

(iii) Arranging a freshers party within two weeks of the start of the academic session

(iv) Informing parents in advance of the repercussions of ragging

The Supreme Court appointed monitoring committee on ragging has asked the Union Human Resources Development Ministry to set up a toll free number to help students check the menace of ragging.

But stopping this menace  commands the cooperation of all to make this law effective. Social awareness of the students is also a major requirement to repeal such evil custom.

A Pakistani had taught me a redeeming English phrase: “At the expense of repeating myself …”. I first heard it from a dialogue of Rahat Kazmi – Pakistan’s TV superstar of yesteryears, in his avatar as Dr Ahmer Ansari in a serial that, in my opinion, epitomized excellence in TV production! Dhoop Kinarey, the serial was not just about perfect acting; it was more like a few people going about the upheavals, trials and tribulations of their lives and someone, seemingly from a distance, capturing this normal life on video camera. Such was the excellence of the shots that it seemed unbelievable that, with all its “cuts” and “retakes”, such perfection in celluloid acting could be achieved.

And here try I draw a parallel to this serial, to a show that emanates from the local stage of Rabindra Bhavan. And so, I may kindly be allowed “the expense of repeating myself “ from a published article of mine - “If ever I am coerced into being lavish in my praise, I reserve it today for the hunky Manash Das..., and Ranjeev Lal Barua, his perfect foil on stage…”. The details of that quote are not at all that important in this context; but the latest stage performance of these two artistes is what matters the most. If Dhoop Kinarey was cinematic perfection, ‘Art – for Art’s Sake’ was stage perfection. And if the combination of Manash Das-Ranjeev Lal Barua demanded a perfect foil, Dr Chinmoy Chakraborty provided it to perfection! Yes, perfection is the word!

I had initially thought that three male actors, all in their 40s, would not make for the most savoury of theatrical experiences. Well! i was being skeptical on this, I realized later. But English theatre on an Assamese stage had always been a big draw to me – more to be critical than anything else! What transpired over the 75 minutes that I sat glued to my chair, my eyes riveted on the stage, was an intellectual “laughathon” that sought to explore that unique relationship called “friendship” through some mutually strenuous situations between three friends.

As a piece of literary work, there was no doubt that this was a magnificent script – an adaptation of Yesmina Reza’s French play Art. The metaphor of bringing in that “outside influence” into a friendship through a barren white “painting” and how this created strains in the friendship of three people was quite outstanding. But it was the portrayal of the respective roles that drove the play beyond brilliance. The sophistication of Dr Siddhartha Malhotra (enacted by Dr Chinmoy Chakraborty), pitted against the no-nonsense Monojit Banerjee (Ranjeev Lal Barua) and their respective diametrically-opposite perspectives on Siddhartha’s purchase of an expensive “Kamona” painting creates a massive rift between the two. On the face of it, two friends couldn’t care less as to what the other was doing.

 Malhotra’s actions in life continually demanded validation and approval by his friends. That was what made him happy rather than the purchase of the “Kamona” itself. It was the thorough on-the-face disapproval of the painting by Banerjee that triggers a passionately heated exchange of dialogues that puts the friendship to severe test. Caught in the middle is Ivan Gomes (Manash Das), an indecisive young man seeking to lean once towards Malhotra and then towards Banerjee. The intricacies of self-doubt and the tendency to be overtly self-righteous grind the actors through a verbal duel – heated exchanges rebuking each other and berating their respective families. The worst affected in this whole ego-clash of Malhotra and Banerjee is the aspiring groom, Ivan Gomes, whose indecisive mindset virtually makes him an emotional wreck.

Gripping, tense and at the same time funny, with a lovely play of words for dialogues, the play carried the viewer through the complexities of the human personality. What stood out was the sheer ease-of-enactment of three extremely difficult and challenging roles and the cohesive spontaneity with which the actors dealt with each other. I always had the sneaking suspicion that the Ranjeev-Manash combination would one day turn out to be the most potent draw for the English theatre enthusiast and I had prophesized accordingly. Today, I am happy to be proved right. Add stage-veteran Dr Chinmoy to this combination and we had a piece of performing art that leaves us salivating for more! So good was their comic-timing!

If I am to critically analyze the factors behind the stupendous success of “Art…”, I feel, the duration of the play was perfect. Not once was I made to feel that things were dragging even slightly. The stage was simple and minimalistic with easy to handle props. The lighting was sophisticated and the actors took the same perfectly. It was deft use of the whole stage with appropriate background music that was always felt but never heard. And perhaps, to top it all was the inspired maiden attempt at direction by Rohan Das – this young man’s creative endowments never ceased to amaze me! I have known him as a brilliant magician but this particular directorial debut will put him under a lot of pressure to exceed himself the next time round. Let me add a round of applause to the sponsors for supporting the project and the producer, Mr Avik Paul, for his belief that something so extraordinary could actually be staged to perfection in Rabindra Bhavan.

Tears flow down my cheeks as I look at the present day scenario all around me. It was when I was returning from college one day that I came across a dry river of humanity. The world seemed selfish, as I looked at a poor woman lying unconscious with a blotch of soiled blood on her tattered clothes in the midst of a busy street of heartless people. People scurried to reach their destinations, without giving the slightest thought to the unsaid pain of the bleeding lady. I was no different. I did nothing except for writing this column to express my concern for this poor women.

This was not the first time that I came across such sight of helplessness and poverty, but, it was indeed the first time I firmly realized the curse of being born poor. Now, the irony is, if I can blame others for their lack of sympathy to the poor woman, I should also be doing that to myself since I did not offer her a helping hand.

As far the Planning Commission report released in 2012, the percentage of people living below poverty line in Assam has increased in 2009-10 as compared to 2004-05. Moreover, the percentage of poor in Assam is the highest among the Seven Sister States of the Northeast.

These homeless poor people spend dark gloomy nights in the streets without a regular dwelling, a secured life and often become victims of social injustice. Although non-government organizations are working to provide shelter to these homeless poor, these alone are not enough to solve the crisis.

Poverty is a curse to life. Neither could the people living below poverty line, question the injustice done to them nor could one bring their plight into light. Not blessed with a share of bliss, one quietly bears all the miseries and cries in silence.

 I know it is unfortunate, but even myself, being very much a part of the society have done nothing so far to ease the lines of worries on the faces of these people, except writing this  piece.

I would definitely like be more personally involved in the problems faced by such sections of the society. And it is should not be only me, but the whole society— a relatively better off section, should come forward to embrace their tears to work for a healthy society.

As said by Mother Teresa, “Let us touch the dying, the poor, the lonely and the unwanted according to the graces we have received and let us not be ashamed or slow to do the humble work”

   Sharing the feeling of love towards the society, let us inspire the world by lifting our hands together towards the highway of true humanity.