Kalyani, Aug. 9: Students at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Kolkata on Saturday demanded a probe against members of the institute’s anti-ragging committee, alleging that they failed to reach out to research scholar Anamitra Roy, who had lodged a complaint before ending his life inside a campus laboratory on Thursday.
Grief-stricken and angered by the death of their peer, students called for the immediate dissolution of the anti-ragging committee, a public release of the probe report, and a public apology from its members for what they described as negligence that led to his death. They also demanded the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) comprising external members and a student representative to investigate the death of the third-year PhD scholar, who, they allege, was repeatedly bullied and abused by a senior scholar protected by his supervisor.
On Saturday, students submitted a 16-point charter of demands. This included the creation of an official disciplinary action committee for professors and staff, an external panel to investigate alleged scientific misconduct in Sourabh Biswas’s PhD thesis as claimed by the deceased in his suicide note, and an official investigation into the 2022 suicide of scholar Subhadip Roy.
The protests intensified on campus, with students bringing Anamitra’s body into the IISER research complex at Mohanpur after the autopsy at AIIMS Kalyani, despite initial resistance from the authorities, who even called the police citing fears of a law-and-order problem.
Another student added, “The DOSA and anti-ragging committee chairman should have considered the Supreme Court order on ragging and lodged an FIR, reaching out to the student immediately after receiving the complaint.”
According to a Calcutta-based lawyer, the Supreme Court mandates that an FIR be filed for every ragging complaint, regardless of the victim’s or institution’s satisfaction with internal measures.“Failure to file an FIR or deliberate delay by institutional authorities is considered culpable negligence,” the lawyer said, adding that the apex court also stressed the need for “exemplary and harsh punishments to deter future incidents.”
When contacted, IISER Kolkata’s DOSA Ayan Banerjee, who is also Dean of International Relations and Outreach, declined to comment, citing the ongoing investigation.
A member of the anti-ragging committee, speaking anonymously to The NfN, claimed that Anamitra’s complaint did not explicitly mention “ragging.” “There was no word like ragging in his complaint. So the allegations of ragging could not be justified. Nevertheless, the complaint was taken seriously and the supervisor was verbally advised to resolve the issue. Since the complaint was lodged in April and no further escalation was reported, it was presumed the matter was settled. Unfortunately, things were different, which was beyond our knowledge,” the member said.
However, students and the victim’s family rejected this explanation.
On Saturday, Anamitra’s cousin, Hrishikesh Roy, lodged a complaint at Haringhata police station against research scholar Sourabh Biswas and supervisor Anindita Bhadra, accusing them of abetting the suicide. “Anamitra was severely bullied and mentally tortured by the duo. It is not a simple case of suicide. He clearly mentioned what led him to end his life,” Hrishikesh said.
A relative of the victim alleged that IISER authorities were “trying to wash their hands of the matter by misinterpreting the situation and raising questions about Anamitra’s mental health while ignoring his complaint and failing to file an FIR. Even if so they never bothered to take care of his illness,” the relative added.
“The Supreme Court order makes it mandatory to file an FIR with the local police for every instance of ragging. In this case, the DOSA on behalf of IISER was obligated to file it and could not rely solely on the supervisor’s observations. It is sheer negligence,” he added further.
On Saturday, after the autopsy, students carried Anamitra’s mortal remains into the campus and staged a protest, demanding justice and a change in the administration’s approach. They also
Later in the afternoon, IISER Kolkata Director Sunil Kumar Khare addressed the students at the Rabindranath Tagore auditorium, reportedly acknowledging “lapses” by the anti-ragging committee and extending full support to their concerns. He announced the dissolution of the committee and the formation of a new probe team comprising an officer not below the rank of Director from another IISER or similar institute, along with a student representative. He also assured that the Mental Care and Wellness Centre would be reconstituted.
When contacted, Professor Khare declined to elaborate, saying, “I am in a very tense situation…,” before disconnecting the call.
The institute has now constituted a fact-finding committee with both external and internal members, including a representative from AIIMS Kalyani, and asked it to submit its report within seven days, sources said. An IISER spokesperson refused to share details of the probing team, while sources indicated that the Ministry of Human Resource Development is also likely to send its own fact-finding team.
Earlier in the day, an SFI delegation led by state committee secretary Debanjan De met the bereaved family at Haringhata police station. De called Anamitra’s death a case of “institutional negligence” and questioned the sincerity of the anti-ragging committee. “It is shocking how the chairman of the committee did not even bother to summon the scholar personally and enquire about the allegations. Such lapses cannot be condoned,” he said.