Bishop Cotton Allegations

Wednesday, 27 May 2009
Ragging in Bishop Cotton School (BCS) in Bangalore - 2 Students Leave School

New Delhi | May 22, 2009:
Two class IX students of Bishop Cotton School (BCS) in Bangalore have left the renowned education institute after complaining of ragging by seniors, prompting the state government to seek a report from the district administration on the incident.

The Two students, Akashdeep Turna and Avtar Singh, quit the school on Monday after their families lodged a complaint with the school authorities that their wards were bullied and physically assaulted by seniors, sources in the school said.

Kuldeep Turna, father of Akashdeep, who is an NRI settled in UK alleged that seniors used to send juniors to fetch food for them from hotels at night and did not allow juniors to use toilet after 11 after dark.

He further alleged that juniors were also beaten by rods and hockey sticks if they did not listen

When contacted, the school headmaster Christopher Robinson admitted receiving the complaint from the families of the two boys and said that the school's house master has given him a report on the alleged incident.

"The report has come and I am studying it," he said.

Annoyed over the incident, Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal has sought a report from the Shimla district administration on the matter.

"Immediately after hearing of the incident, the CM ordered the Shimla district administration to submit a report," sources in the CM's office said.

They said though no no time frame has been specified, the district administration has been asked to submit the report immediately.

Deputy Commissioner Shimla Amar Singh Rathore confirmed that he has been asked for a report on the entire episode, which he would submit at the earliest.

The 150 year old school is not the first from the hill state where ragging incidents have been reported.

Educational institutes in Himachal were in news after the death of Aman Kachroo, the first year MBBS student of Dr Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College in March, due to ragging.

Subsequently complaints of ragging poured in from Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC), Shimla, Sanawar based Lawrence school and Homeopathic college at Solan.

Alarmed by death of Kachroo, the state government introduced a stringent anti-ragging ordinance.

Seeking to take to task anybody who indulges in the menace, the CM had yesterday ordered deployment of plain clothed police in higher education institutions