Phagwara: Lovely Professional University (LPU) in Punjab was plunged into chaos late on Saturday as roughly 2,000 students went on a rampage, damaging university infrastructure and torching sections of buildings after unverified rumours spread that a female student had been gangraped or had taken her own life.
Authorities said the uproar seems to have been triggered by confusion and misinformation, with police confirming that no formal complaint connecting either a death or an assault to the circulating allegations has been filed.
The university, meanwhile, rubbished the claims as entirely baseless, accusing “anti-social elements” of deliberately fuelling panic through social media to disrupt the campus.
Highway Blocked, Campus Vandalised
The agitation started near the women’s hostel after posts alleging a sexual assault — some naming a university worker — went viral on social media and spread quickly across the Phagwara campus. Protesters then moved onto the Jalandhar–Phagwara National Highway, stopping traffic for hours before returning to the university and turning violent, as reported by India Today.
According to police and eyewitness accounts, demonstrators shattered glass panes, pelted bricks and flower pots, and ignited fires in parts of the campus buildings.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Kapurthala Gaurav Toora confirmed that the highway has now been cleared and normal traffic flow restored.
Police: No Rape Complaint
Investigating officers said a woman died by suicide four to five days earlier in the vicinity of the campus’s agriculture department, but emphasised that no complaint has been received linking her death to the rape rumours now inflaming student anger.
“The students claim that there was a woman who was raped. We don’t have a complaint about the girl,” SSP Toora said, adding that neither the identity of the woman nor that of the alleged perpetrator has been established.
“So far, we have found no substantiating evidence to corroborate the incident, and no complaint has been received by us,” the SSP said.
Rumours ‘Fabricated’: LPU
In an official statement, LPU Registrar Dr Monica Gulati said the university “categorically clarifies that there is no truth in the rumours presently being circulated”. She characterised the spread of the allegations as a “deliberate and concerted attempt” to tarnish the institution’s image and appealed to students, parents and the wider public not to believe, share or amplify the unverified claims.
The administration directed the campus community to rely solely on information issued through the university’s official communication channels.
Police and university officials are engaged in ongoing discussions with student representatives as part of efforts to ease tensions and restore normalcy on the campus, SSP Toora said.