Ragging Incident at Grant Medical College

Mumbai: Amidst the rising concerns regarding ragging incidents in medical institutes, an incident has been reported from Grant Medical College and JJ Group of Hospitals, Mumbai where a junior was harassed and forced to dance inside the hostel. Later, the two accused second-year MBBS students were suspended from the institute's hostel for one year for ragging a junior.

According to the Anti-Ragging Committee of the medical college, the two seniors were found guilty of ragging a junior on the premises of the first-year hostel in a drunken state. They allegedly asked the fresher to dance but the situation did not escalate further due to a professor's intervention.

The committee, which included a police officer, a parent, a journalist, and college professors, made its recommendation to suspend these two seniors after it received a complaint on October 17 that a junior medical student was harassed in his hostel premises prompting an investigation in accordance with the National Medical Commission (NMC) and Maharashtra University of Health Sciences regulations.

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During the investigation, it was found that one of the members of the committee while doing rounds at the hostel at night saw the two students allegedly harassing the junior by asking for his name and forcing him to dance inside the college premises.

The incident occurred three days after the commencement of the academic year 2024-25 for medical courses on October 14, with MBBS classes resuming at both Grant Medical College and the affiliated JJ Hospital.

As per a TOI news report, the second-year and first-year hostels are located at opposite ends of the hospital campus and the seniors are not allowed to interact with freshers at the hostel. To maintain a secure environment, an anti-ragging squad makes rounds of the hostels twice daily.

Speaking to the Daily, a senior doctor from the hospital said, "It was during one of these rounds that a professor caught two students drunk on the premises of the first-year hostel. They were asking the freshers to dance, but before the situation escalated, the professor intervened."

Meanwhile, a senior official from the Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER) told HT, "This aims to send a strong message against ragging and reinforce a zero-tolerance policy toward such behaviour in educational institutions."

“Students must sign an anti-ragging affidavit before confirming admission to the college. If a student still engages in ragging, there are strict guidelines for this. MUHS and the college administration have reiterated their commitment to providing a safe and respectful learning environment," added the official.

Also read: 7 students of Fatehpur Medical College expelled after 2 injured freshmen allege ragging