Seven engineering students of the Parala Maharaja Engineering College in Berhampur, Odisha, were thrown out of their hostel for preparing beef, which led to tension in the college, and more policemen were sent to the area. The dean of students welfare posted the dismissals on the notice board on Thursday, saying that the students had involved themselves in ‘restricted activities,’ contrary to the Hall of Residence rules and regulations.
However, the notification did not offer details concerning the kind of activities that are restricted in the rooms. Further, the reports stated that one of them had to suffer expulsion and a ₹2,000 fine. The act was done on Wednesday night when the students were accused of having prepared beef in the hostel kitchen. The situation got worse when other boarders with whom the lady was related accosted the dean with the story.
Instead, a complaint was made asserting the principles of functioning together with respect for the values and beliefs of all the students in the diverse college. According to the complaint, cooking beef created tension and stress for the members of the community, hence creating tension on campus. Subsequently, some Bajrang Dal and Vishva Hindu Parishad activists went to the college campus and called on the college Principal to press for punitive action against the students. Upon receiving the complaints from other boarders, the college authorities immediately followed up on the allegations by launching an inquiry.
This inquiry ascertained that the students in question actually participated in behavior that is prohibited within the college compounds, hence leading to their expulsion. This incident reminds us of a recent scandal in Uttar Pradesh that went viral, where a principal of the school was captured on video allegedly unmasking a seven-year-old student from school for bringing non-vegetarian food items into school. In that case, it has since been the duty of local officials to establish how the child was expelled from the said institution. They are not complacent about continues concerns of diet and culture in relation to other ethnic groups.
Check here for the latest updates in Hindi!