Himachal student death: UGC constitutes fact-finding committee, assures 'culprits won't be spared'

Following the tragic death of a 19, year old female student from a local Government Degree College in Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has decided to constitute a Fact Finding Committee. The safety of students was stressed as the foremost priority by the UGC. In its statement, the UGC also assured that the culprits will not be spared and that they will be taken to task rigorously. The University Grants Commission has taken serious cognisance of the tragic suicide at the Government Degree College, Dharamsala. It has been decided to constitute a Fact Finding Committee. UGC assures that culprits will not be spared, and stringent action will follow. Student safety is paramount, the UGC said in the statement. The UGC statement came in response to the viral video of a statement of the victim apparently recorded before she died. The UGC statement mentions the word "suicide", but the victim's family has alleged that she was thrashed by three senior students and raped by a college professor.

On 18 September last year, according to an FIR filed by her father, three students (Harshita, Aakriti and Komolika) physically assaulted and threatened his daughter. As per information received from the Police, a Professor (Ashok Kumar) has been accused of making indecent advances toward the victim. My daughter received such serious trauma due to these events that she required hospitalization, which resulted in a delay in filing the FIR. Police were advised by Kumar. During the investigation into these matters, it will be revealed whether the mental and physical health issues of Pallavi were a direct result of the incidents of harassing and threatening, and how they contributed to her physical decline, which led to her death while receiving treatment at Ludhiana, Punjab. A police official stated that a thorough investigation will provide additional information on the connection between the allegations against the above-mentioned individuals and the deterioration of Pallavi's health, leading to her death.