We've all seen the sound and the fury....what started off as an attempt to make our voice heard escalated into shocking violence. There is nothing to be gained by brooding over what has happened already....we must look towards what must be done now. We have to make sure that all our problems do reach the authorities...but not in an unruly or uncivilised fashion. Make no mistake, yesterday marked a new low in the history of IIT Kharagpur. We were outraged, and our anger was more than justified. But the way the whole sordid saga played out........ it's something which most of us are not proud of.
Here then, are a few points which all of us must prioritise... as responsible students of IIT Kharagpur.
Rumours must NOT be spread.... the inflammatory power of word-of-mouth is significant. Therefore, we urge you NOT to lay credence to any stray bit of news you might listen. Following are a few examples...
1. Rohit's epilepsy: Rohit did not suffer from epilepsy, and he never had any fits which pointed to the same. In several national newspapers, there was talk about his "history of epilepsy". Please do not be misled by these reports. The head injury was sustained when Rohit fell off a rickshaw and fell near the LLR gate.
2. Injury sustained while playing basketball: Once again, courtesy our newspapers. This is an absolute falsehood, as confirmed by Rohit's friends.
3. "Expired" medicines provided at BC Roy: One newspaper claimed that expired medicines were provided at the BC Roy hospital.... but there has been no proof to indicate that this is indeed the case.
4. DOSA got slapped: There have been whispers about how Prof. D.K. Tripathy, the(former) Dean of Student Affairs, was physically abused as he was leaving TOAT yesterday night upon the conclusion of the Open House meeting. This is not true.... neither the Dean, nor any other member of the faculty/administration was physically abused.
5. Insti snapped LAN connections: Nearly all the newspapers claimed that the Institute snapped the Internet connections to prevent "students from being united" .....but in fact, this was suggested to the Institute by the students.
However, there are a few facts which are in dispute... some rumours which are actually true.
1. Media initiated the stone pelting: The first stone thrown in the direction of the Director's house was indeed hurled by a member of the press. This individual's fate remains unknown.
2. Discouraging Candle march : The candle light protest march was indeed discouraged by the Hall Presidents(and not under any kind of pressure from the insti...) when they unanimously agreed, in a meeting that a gathering of such magnitude could soon escalate into further chaos and possibly violence, given the abundance of naked flames....
3. The press release: The Press Release has been concluded by the Institute at 5pm.
More on the steps we must take later....watch this space.
Here then, are a few points which all of us must prioritise... as responsible students of IIT Kharagpur.
Rumours must NOT be spread.... the inflammatory power of word-of-mouth is significant. Therefore, we urge you NOT to lay credence to any stray bit of news you might listen. Following are a few examples...
1. Rohit's epilepsy: Rohit did not suffer from epilepsy, and he never had any fits which pointed to the same. In several national newspapers, there was talk about his "history of epilepsy". Please do not be misled by these reports. The head injury was sustained when Rohit fell off a rickshaw and fell near the LLR gate.
2. Injury sustained while playing basketball: Once again, courtesy our newspapers. This is an absolute falsehood, as confirmed by Rohit's friends.
3. "Expired" medicines provided at BC Roy: One newspaper claimed that expired medicines were provided at the BC Roy hospital.... but there has been no proof to indicate that this is indeed the case.
4. DOSA got slapped: There have been whispers about how Prof. D.K. Tripathy, the(former) Dean of Student Affairs, was physically abused as he was leaving TOAT yesterday night upon the conclusion of the Open House meeting. This is not true.... neither the Dean, nor any other member of the faculty/administration was physically abused.
5. Insti snapped LAN connections: Nearly all the newspapers claimed that the Institute snapped the Internet connections to prevent "students from being united" .....but in fact, this was suggested to the Institute by the students.
However, there are a few facts which are in dispute... some rumours which are actually true.
1. Media initiated the stone pelting: The first stone thrown in the direction of the Director's house was indeed hurled by a member of the press. This individual's fate remains unknown.
2. Discouraging Candle march : The candle light protest march was indeed discouraged by the Hall Presidents(and not under any kind of pressure from the insti...) when they unanimously agreed, in a meeting that a gathering of such magnitude could soon escalate into further chaos and possibly violence, given the abundance of naked flames....
3. The press release: The Press Release has been concluded by the Institute at 5pm.
More on the steps we must take later....watch this space.
Its unfortunate that the candle light march was called off initially. There was no meeting of the HPs of all halls of residences, which is true. So if the decision was taken, it was taken by selected few. it was good to see that many sensible people came for the candle light march and continued it with peace. One who is gone is gone. Lets pray for his soul to rest in peace. Its time that the students should decide when to trust each other without assuming or speculating things. And lets not forget the cause we are fighting for---Punish the guilty.
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