Hyd Uni scholar slits wrist in faculty room after alleged harassment by guide

A research scholar at the University of Hyderabad (UoH) on Friday attempted suicide by slitting his wrist, after alleged harassment by his guide.  The incident happened around 4.30 pm at the guide's lab in the department, and the student was rushed to the hospital soon. Moses Abraham, who is originally from Machilipatnam in Andhra, was said to be pursuing PhD at the Advanced Centre for Research of High Materials (ACHREM), where he was reportedly working on 'Condense Theory Solid State Physics' for his thesis. The student alleged that his guide, G S Vaitheeswaran, did not allow him to attend seminars and asked him to change his research area and supervisor, despite having already published two research papers.  Reportedly troubled with the idea of starting his work from scratch, the scholar took the extreme step.  When TNIE contacted pro vice-chancellor Vipin Srivastava, he said  that the student's guide was in shock after the incident, and also dispelled rumours about Abraham being a Dalit. Incidentally, M Venkatesh, a Dalit PhD scholar who had killed himself due to the 'systemic failure' of the university in 2013, was also from the same department. The university campus witnessed large scale protests earlier this year, after PhD scholar Rohith Vemula killed himself by hanging himself from the ceiling of a hostel room on January 17, 2016.