Udaipur BDS Student Dies, Alleges Faculty Harassment
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Outrage and protests erupted on campus when a senior Jammu and Kashmir student pursuing a Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) at a private medical college in Udaipur, Rajasthan, committed suicide. Late Thursday evening, 25-year-old student Sweta Singh was found hanging in her dorm room. Her roommate found the body and immediately told the university authorities, who then notified the police. Sweta charged two teachers of psychologicaally harassing and manipulating her in her suicide note, which finally drove her to take the deadly action. In the letter, Sweta said that the institution had been delaying interior examinations for almost two years, hence favoring others who claimed to have paid lecturers for passing grades while hindering the academic progress of genuine pupils. She particularly blamed two of her staff members—”Mahi ma’am” and “Bhagwat sir”—for intellectual bias and emotional abuse. The message then claimed that those who followed the rules and worked hard were purposefully made to feel guilt, failure, and stress, while those with financial or influential resources were preferred. Sweta’s letter showed great dissatisfaction, noting that deceptive behavior was destroying their jobs. Demanding vengeance, she said that the teachers ought to be reprimanded to reduce the suffering the kids had gone through. A major, impromptu demonstration on the Pacific Dental College campus was triggered by the occurrence. Hundreds of students organized a sit-in Friday morning to obstruct roadways and demand severe penalties for those at fault. Supporting Sweta, they blamed the institution’s leadership for neglecting multiple complaints of internal inconsistency, discrimination, and emotional abuse. The protestors believed Sweta’s situation represented a larger pattern of mistreatment and dread many students felt but were too terrified to share. Some contended that teachers misled students by using internal grades and exams to influence and retaliate without reasonable or justification. Local police in the Sukher Police Station confirmed that an FIR had been submitted and that both instructors named in the letter had been arrested as tensions grew. Authorities have pledged a just and objective investigation. From Jammu and Kashmir, Sweta’s heartbroken and dumbfounded family brought her body for an autopsy. Her father, a police officer, said he was very saddened and begged for justice for his daughter, whom he characterised as bright, diligent, and strong. Recognizing the gravity of what had happened, the college principal released a short statement promising full collaboration with the police. He continued, the results of the internal inquiry now in progress would advise the required administrative action. The statement did not, however, soothe the increasing unrest among pupils who swore to continue their protests until actual changes were made. Sweta’s passing has brought student mental health, especially in private medical and dentistry schools where academic pressure is often paired with hazy grading practices and insufficient psychological support, back to the front of national attention. Educators and activists believe that these institutions sometimes create hostile settings where pupils feel insignificant and weak and have limited means of grievance resolution. Professional groups, according to them, require trained mental health therapists as well as fast inspections and neutral evaluations. There has been more media coverage and public awareness of the occasion as well. Many student groups and human rights organizations have demanded an unbiased investigation and asked the Rajasthan government and educational authorities to act. They contend that avoiding other kids from going through what Sweta experienced requires fundamental reform and that accountability is inadequate. As her family mourns Sweta’s death and pupils keep coming, it is a terrible reminder of the invisible difficulties many youngsters experience. Though initially so promising, the academic effort fell apart and raised serious questions about institutional responsibility, compassion, and fairness.
