Kannur Dental College Student Death: Family alleges harassment; protests erupt

Thiruvananthapuram: The parents of Nithin Raj R L, a student of Kannur Dental College, who was found dead allegedly after being harassed by faculty members, on Monday claimed that their son was subjected to constant "emotional torture" and that it was a case of murder. Raj (22), a native of Uzhamalackal, Puthukulangara in Thiruvananthapuram district, was found critically injured near the medical college block of Kannur Dental College in Anjarakandy, after falling from a building on the afternoon of April 10.

He was rushed to a hospital but later succumbed to his injuries. The family had alleged that Raj was emotionally harassed by two faculty members, following which a case was registered against Dental Anatomy Department Head M K Ram and Associate Professor K T Sangeetha Nambiar for abetment of suicide and under provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Speaking to reporters, Raj's father YL Rajan said he had little hope of getting justice.

"They all killed my son. What justice can I expect? I worked hard for his education. We lost everything," he said. Rajan alleged that even three days after Raj's death, there had been no communication from the college authorities. "He was a student of that college. Not even a word has been said by the authorities. Students there, fearing for their future, are not speaking out. At least one student should speak out for us," he said. He further alleged that his son was often told by teachers that he would fail in exams.

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"But he was confident that he would clear the exams and complete the course in five years. All of them emotionally shattered him and killed him," he said. Meanwhile, protests erupted at Kannur Dental College on Monday. KSU leaders held a protest march and staged a dharna in front of the college. A large number of police personnel were deployed at the college gate.

However, KSU leaders managed to enter the campus and staged a dharna outside the main entrance of the college. They demanded the arrest of the accused persons and said they would continue their protest until then. Police later detained the Kerala Students Union activists and removed them from the site. KSU is the student organisation of Congress. Political organisations and their student wings have also announced protests, with more marches being held near the college. Education Minister V Sivankutty said that the government stands with Raj's family.

"We will arrange an opportunity for the family to meet the chief minister soon," he said. Speaking to reporters, Sivankutty said that misuse of internal assessment marks by teachers to harass students would be addressed, and proper criteria would be put in place to prevent such incidents.