Forty medical students and trainee doctors from the College of Medicine and JNM Hospital, Kalyani, Nadia, have been suspended for six months by college authorities for allegedly terrorising and intimidating their peers.

This decision was made following a preliminary investigation by the institution’s Anti-Ragging Committee, which was then reviewed in an extended college council meeting held on Thursday evening.

An investigation has been launched, and further actions will be determined based on the findings.

Until then, the 40 accused students will not be permitted to enter the college, hostel or hospital premises, though they can sit for their exams, according to college sources.

Sources said the expelled students are reportedly affiliated to the Trinamool Congress Chhatra Parishad and are accused of intimidating students.

The probe began after 32 students from the college submitted a joint petition via email to principal Manidip Pal and other authorities earlier this week.

They accused three prominent leaders of the Trinamool Congress Chhatra Parishad and 10 class representatives of the ruling party students’ organisation of creating a culture of fear, making life unbearable on the campus with both mental and physical harassment that hurt their studies.

In response, Pal referred the matter to the Anti-Ragging Committee, which convened an emergency meeting to hear from the accused and the complainants.

During the meeting, the committee also reviewed several complaints that individual students had lodged with the authorities.

The committee found merit in the allegations and recommended the suspensions, a committee member said.

The decision was then confirmed at the college council meeting, where a unanimous resolution led to the expulsion of the 40 students and junior doctors for six months.

Included among the expelled are prominent TMCP leaders and trainee doctors Sheikh Md Akhil, Abdul Alim Biswas, Bichitra Kanti Bala and Hasan ur Jarnan Mondal.

Pal told The Telegraph: “Based on numerous pieces of prima facie evidence, statements from individual students, and digital evidence, the extended college council has decided to expel these students from the hostel, hospital, and campus for six months. An investigation into the allegations will continue.”

All the expelled 40 would have to vacate the hostel immediately, said sources.

Malda college notice

Consistent demonstrations by MBBS students and junior doctors of the Malda Medical College & Hospital (MMCH) prompted authorities to issue a notice on Thursday, stating “any threat culture” on campus would be dealt with firmness.

The notice signed by principal Partha Pratim Mukherjee, medical superintendent-cum-vice principal Prasenjit Bar and dean of students affairs Bapilal Bala, says “all undergraduate academic batches and the batch of interns will form an autonomous caretaker body, namely ‘The UG students’ Council’ in the college”.

The authorities agreed to form a resident doctors’ association for house staff, postgraduate trainees and senior residents democratically.