Three girls commit suicide in Tamil Nadu, attributing school, high fees
Three girl students of SVS Yoga Medical College at Kallakurichi near Villupuram in Tamil Nadu committed suicide on Saturday evening accusing the government of charging excess fees and “torture”, and attributing college chairman Vasuki Subramanian for their death.
The bodies of the three were discovered in a well near the faculty. Naturopathy classes were being done by the girls.
While Subramanian was absconding sources said, her son Sukhi Verma had been arrested. The school has long seen protests over extra fees, including suicide plays over the issue in September and October.
In a two-page suicide note that all three of them — E Saranya and V Priyanka, both 18, and T Monisha, 19 — signed, the girls said students had filed several charges against Subramanian, to no avail. Citing “torture” by the direction, the girls expected that their suicide would finally compel authorities to take actions against the chairman.
Villupuram range DIG Anisa Husain said a probe had been began by a team headed by the district SP.
In the suicide note, the girls talked about the government billing “excessive fees”, “around Rs 6 lakh”, and never giving the bill. In spite of the cash charged from them, the girls said, the faculty lacked suitable courses or teachers and there was “nothing to learn”. “After our suicide, she (Subramanian) will say our character was awful. Please do not believe her but probe and take actions against her,” says the note.
Validating that the management had been attributed by the girls and named Subramanian within their note, a senior college officer said that apart from protesting against the fees, pupils had been demanding more facilities.
The college is located on the Chennai-Salem main road and affiliated to Tamil Nadu’s Dr MGR Medical University.
SVS Yoga Medical College was previously in the news in 2010 after the Madras High Court castigated the faculty management for demanding fees from a first-year student for the entire five plus a half years for issuing a transfer security.
In the year 2012, the Madras HC dismissed its petition for a new inspection of its homoeopathy school after it was refused permission mentioning want. The court directed it to deliver her certificates,” said a police officer.
In September 7 this past year, there were major protests by students against the school management before the Villupuram collectorate. The protest that began as a hunger strike turned violent when a couple of pupils tried to self- immolate on September 14. When the district government stayed away, six pupils needed to be admitted to hospital and ate rat poison in October.
“Only benefit they received from that failed suicide pact was changing of their hostel to another building. Still the government or authorities concerned turned a blind eye to the violations of the management,” said a former teacher of the college.
