NEW DELHI: A first-year architecture student was allegedly ragged so severely by his seniors at a well-known professional college in the capital that he has been under treatment for four months and still cannot walk without support.

The victim, Naveen Kujur , 22, a student of B Arch at the School of Planning and Architecture ( SPA ), said in his complaint that he was made to do sit-ups and push-ups by his seniors at the college hostel the entire night on September 2. The seniors did not relent even though Naveen pleaded with them to stop, he alleged.

The SPA administration said the college received Kujur’s complaint but couldn’t take action because he had not named anyone. Rajendra Kachroo , responsible for monitoring the anti-ragging programme of the UGC and the HRD ministry, said SPA had “neglected its responsibilities” and should have informed the police immediately.

According to his father, David Kujur, the boy is still recuperating at his hometown in Jharkhand. Police registered a criminal case on December 30 and said they will be investigating the incident.

Naveen told TOI that the torture began when his senior called him to the terrace side of the hostel around midnight. "First they asked me to do push-ups. After doing around a hundred they put bricks on my back and asked me to continue. The seniors then told me to hold the bricks parallel to my chest and stand still till they finished their countdown," he said.

After that, the exhausted student was allegedly forced to do sit ups while the seniors began their 'random' countdown. "They started their count from minus and then went to zero and then began to count randomly. If I did 50 they would again start from 30 and ask me to do another 100. My legs were trembling and I was almost on the verge of losing my consciousness but the seniors did not stop," Naveen alleged.

The next day, the student could not walk and was falling down on his way to the bus stand. "My friend rushed me to Holy Family Hospital and I was provided preliminary treatment but that did not help. I informed my father who asked me to immediately return home. I tried boarding the train on September 10 but could not climb on it. Next day, my friends helped me board the train," Naveen claimed.

David Kujur said he had to take his son to a hospital in Vellore for treatment where he was advised six months' bed-rest.

"He has been diagnosed with ligament tear and knee cap injuries. He can't walk without support and his college is not co-operating. They have even denied him attendance. I approached the court and now, four months after the incident, I got a call from the Delhi Police about filing of the FIR," he said.

Police, however, said they swung into action and began their probe immediately after receiving a complaint from the college. "A copy of the complaint from the boy's father, dated September 12, and another complaint dated October 12, was forwarded by C P Raghaw, SPA registrar. The content of the complaint and enquiry has been conducted and a prima facie case of wrongful restraint and causing hurt was made out. We registered the case under 341 and 323 of IPC on December 30 and are investigating," said a senior police officer.

SPA's dean of students, Neelima Risbud, said Naveen did not name anyone in his complaint. "We can't take action against unknown people. So we filed an FIR and police will investigate the incident. The student didn't inform the school when he left and we couldn't find out much about the incident in the internal inquiry as none of his hostel mates gave any statements," she said.

Kachroo, however, said SPA should have called in the cops right away. "An internal inquiry is merely meant to find out if there is any element of truth in the allegations. They should have had an anti-ragging committee headed by senior teachers. And, they should have immediately informed the police instead of waiting for so many months. They have violated UGC's regulations on ragging which, according to the Supreme Court, should be followed by every college in the country," he said.

