The Himachal Pradesh government on Saturday instituted an inquiry into the alleged incident of a suspected ragging-linked death of a 19-year-old girl student of Dharamshala College, Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu told mediapersons in Kandaghat.
The inquiry will cover all aspects, including the alleged sexual harassment by a professor and caste-related abuse in the college. Sukhu said strict action would be taken in the case.
Sukhu said based on the video statement of the deceased student in which she named the professor, the accused professor, Ashok Kumar, would be suspended.
An order issued by the Director of Higher Education said a four-member committee, headed by Additional Director of Higher Education Harish Kumar, with the principals of Dhaliara, Baijnath and Naura government colleges as its members, has been constituted to conduct a fact-finding and preliminary inquiry into the unfortunate death of the student of Government College, Dharamshala.
The committee has been asked to submit its report within three days, covering all aspects and angles of the alleged harassment, sexual assault, ragging and caste-related comments by teachers and students of the college.
The student died during treatment at a hospital in Ludhiana. Three students of the college were booked for ragging and voluntarily causing hurt, while a professor was booked for sexual harassment on January 1 following a complaint by her father.
The student’s father alleged that his daughter was beaten by three seniors on September 18, 2025, while a college professor indulged in obscene acts with her. The accused professor has denied all allegations levelled against him.
Meanwhile, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has also set up a five-member fact-finding committee to investigate the incident related to the student’s death at Government Degree College, Dharamshala, after the UGC Anti-Ragging Helpline registered a suo motu complaint.
A senior UGC official said the commission has taken serious note of the incident and that the culprits will not be spared.
Also Read: Dharamshala student’s death: College defends accused professor
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