Attack on Trump reopens chilling chapter in American politics: US media
Washington (PTI): The assassination attempt on former president Donald Trump is a "horrific moment" for America and a "sobering reminder" of the threat that political violence poses to democracy in the country ahead of the high-stakes presidential election, the US media commented on Sunday.
Trump, 78, survived an attempt on his life on Saturday when a young shooter fired multiple shots at him at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, injuring his right ear.
Americans received a sobering reminder on Saturday of the threat that political violence poses to our democracy, The New York Times said.
"It is now incumbent on political leaders of both parties and on Americans individually and collectively, to resist a slide into further violence and the type of extremist language that fuels it. Saturday’s attack should not be taken as a provocation or a justification," it said.
"Americans also must be clear-eyed about the challenge that is confronting this nation. Saturday’s events cannot be written off as an aberration. Violence is infecting and inflecting American political life," the newspaper said.
"Acts of violence have long shadowed American democracy, but they have loomed larger and darker of late. Cultural and political polarisation, the ubiquity of guns and the radicalising power of the internet have all been contributing factors, as this board laid out in its editorial series The Danger Within in 2022. This high-stakes presidential election is further straining the nation’s commitment to the peaceful resolution of political differences," it said.
Democracy requires partisans to accept that the process is more important than the results. Even before Saturday’s events, there were worrying signs that many Americans were failing that essential test, it added.
The assassination attempt is a horrific moment for America that could have been much worse. But we can’t say it comes as a complete surprise. Political hostility and hateful rhetoric have been rising to a decibel level that far too often in the American past has led to violence and attempted murder. Some of us still remember 1968 all too well, The Wall Street Journal said.
The shooter alone is responsible for his actions. But leaders on both sides need to stop describing the stakes of the election in apocalyptic terms. Democracy won’t end if one or the other candidate is elected, it added.
"Fascism is not aborning if Mr. Trump wins, unless you have little faith in American institutions," the paper said.
The targeting of a former president, also the Republican presidential candidate for the November election, at a campaign rally just days before he accepted the Republican nomination is, by definition, an attack on democracy and the right of each American to choose their leaders, CNN said in an opinion piece.
The attempted assassination, which opens a dark new chapter in America’s cursed story of political violence, shook a nation already deeply estranged during one of the most tense periods of its modern history, it said.
While Trump is not currently serving as president, his wounding underscores the ever-present threat that always hangs over the office and those who run for it – and especially for those who claim it, it said.
Trump is likely to face President Joe Biden, a Democrat, in the November election. However, Biden, 81, is under pressure to quit the race following his disastrous debate performance against Trump last month.
Four American presidents have been killed while in office, most recently John F. Kennedy in 1963.
The fact that Trump was attacked ends a 40-year period in which many have assumed that the Secret Service’s expertise had greatly reduced the potential for such outrages – and will cast a pall that will last for years, the news network said.
Trump’s targeting during a presidential campaign drew comparisons to the assassination of Democratic candidate Robert F Kennedy in 1968, a blood-soaked year that also saw the killing of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr and violence at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, which will host the same event this year, it said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Dental student death: Probe against faculty after harassment allegations
Kannur (Kerala)(PTI): Police have launched a probe against faculty members of Kannur Dental College after a first-year student died after falling from a building in a suspected suicide, officials said on Sunday.
Chakkarakkal police, who registered a case of unnatural death, initiated the probe after the parents and friends of the deceased alleged that he had been subjected to emotional harassment by faculty members.
The deceased has been identified as Nithin Raj RL (22), a native of Uzhamalackal, Puthukulangara, Thiruvananthapuram and a first-year BDS student of the college located in Anjarakandy here.
According to police, Raj was found critically injured near the medical college block after falling from the building on the afternoon of April 10. Though he was rushed to the medical college and given treatment, he later succumbed to his injuries.
Following the incident, the college initiated an internal inquiry and on Saturday suspended Dental Anatomy Department Head MK Ram and Associate Professor KT Sangeetha Nambiar.
Police said Raj had sent an audio message to his friends alleging harassment by faculty members, including threats of physical assault and academic repercussions such as reducing his marks in examinations.
Officials at Chakkarakkal police station said a detailed probe is underway into the incident, with digital evidence being collected.
Also, statements by Raj's classmates, college authorities and family members will be recorded soon, police added.
Raj's father Rajan told reporters that his son was emotionally and "verbally harassed" by teachers over his dark complexion and poor family background.
"He worked hard without any support to secure admission on a merit seat in the dental college. But he was harassed by faculty over his caste and complexion. They also threatened to harm him academically," Rajan claimed.
He said that they have lodged a complaint against the faculty members with the police and are expecting a fair probe into the death of his son.
Raj's sister Nikitha said that he had faced repeated harassment based on caste and complexion.
She claimed that Raj had filed a complaint with the college principal, but no action was taken.
"He used to tell us about such discrimination and harassment regularly. He was once called to the staff room where he was severely harassed," she alleged.
The sister also claimed that Raj was once called a "slum dog" in the classroom in front of other students by a faculty member. "Once, when the harassment became unbearable, he reacted, after which the verbal abuse intensified," she added.
When contacted, college authorities told PTI that two faculty members had been suspended and that they were cooperating with the police investigation.
"We will fully cooperate with the investigation and share all details. Further action will be taken based on the outcome of the police probe," an official said.
The body of Raj was brought to his residence in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday, and buried on the land owned by the family.
Sheeba MR, mother of veterinary student Sidharthan JS, who died in 2024 allegedly after being ragged by fellow students at the Government Veterinary College, Wayanad, visited the house of Raj.
Sheeba said that after her son’s death, she had hoped such incidents would not recur in colleges, but a similar tragedy had happened again.
"These suspensions are only cosmetic as those responsible will be reinstated later. In Sidharthan’s case, the accused students were to be re-admitted soon. Only after our legal fight are they still kept out," she said.
Meanwhile, political leaders also demanded a detailed probe into the incident.
Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala called for a high-level inquiry into Raj’s death.
He said the government should take seriously the allegations by the student’s parents and relatives that caste-and-complexion-based harassment led to the death and take urgent steps to bring those responsible to justice.
Chennithala said the issue should not be closed by merely suspending two teachers and noted that the parents had firmly alleged severe caste discrimination.
Leader of the Opposition in the outgoing Kerala Assembly VD Satheesan visited Raj’s house and demanded a thorough probe.
"Teachers are expected to guide students. How did such people become teachers? There should be a detailed probe," he said.
He added that strict intervention was needed to ensure such incidents are not repeated in the state.
CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP A A Rahim also visited the family and described the incident as painful.
Rahim said Raj was the hope of his family, which had supported his education despite hardship.
"CPI(M) will stand with the family until justice is delivered. Such an incident should not have happened in a society like Kerala," he said.
He also compared the incident with the death of Rohith Vemula at the University of Hyderabad.
"The family has told us that Raj faced repeated caste discrimination and was deeply affected by it. A detailed probe must be conducted and justice ensured. The action taken should set an example so that such incidents are not repeated in Kerala," Rahim said.
Meanwhile, the Kerala State Human Rights Commission on Sunday directed the police to conduct a detailed probe into the death of the student and submit a report within a week.
The Commission took a case on its own based on media reports.
Commission Judicial member K Baijunath issued directions to the Kannur City Police Commissioner to investigate the allegations surrounding the incident and file a report within the stipulated time, according to a statement.
