Blitz Bureau
THE Supreme Court on July 28 expressed serious concern over rising student suicides in educational institutions, questioning the management of IIT Kharagpur and Sharda University over their handling of recent cases. A Bench comprising Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice R Mahadevan, while hearing a suo motu case, demanded accountability from both institutions.
“Why are students committing suicide? What is the management doing?” the Bench asked pointedly, directing both Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal police to file detailed status reports within four weeks.
In the case of Sharda University, the court was informed by amicus curiae Aparna Bhatt that the father of the deceased dental student had lodged an FIR two hours after the incident. A suicide note was found, and two individuals have been arrested. However, the court criticised the university for not following prior Supreme Court directives.
“Did the students inform the father? Why didn’t the college management communicate this? Is it not their responsibility to inform the police and the parents immediately?” the court asked, raising concerns over administrative negligence. The Bench stopped short of further comment, noting that investigations are still underway.
In the IIT Kharagpur case, Bhatt informed the court that the local police had not provided her with any substantive updates, drawing further criticism from the Bench.
