Police block members of Students Federation of India who staged a protest march at Kannur Dental College in Anjarakandy demanding action against faculty members accused in the death of first year dental student RL Nithin Raj. (file) | Photo credit: Special arrangement
The suspected suicide of Nithin Raj, a native of Thiruvananthapuram, at Kannur Dental College has brought into focus the lack of a monitoring system in Kerala state universities to check the functioning of self-financing colleges.
According to officials of the Self-Financing College Teachers’ and Staff Association (SFCSTA), affiliated to the Center of Indian Trade Unions, most of the self-financing institutions in the state do not have functional anti-scratching cells, SC/ST cells and teacher-student grievance cells, which are mandatory as per University Grants Commission and All India Council for Technical Education guidelines.
KP Abdul Azeez, State Joint Secretary, SFCTSA, said on Wednesday (April 15, 2026) that officials in the universities are also not making efforts to check whether these cells are functional. Mr. Azeez argued that while some colleges have these cells, they follow the line of college management.
Published – 15 Apr 2026 11:44 IST
