Phagwara: Vehicular movement along National Highway-44 in Punjab’s Phagwara resumed after students of Lovely Professional University (LPU) held the highway shut for more than 15 hours, demonstrating over claims that a female student had been raped, police said on Monday.
Jalandhar Police Commissioner Satinder Singh stated that the highway was cleared in the intervening night of Sunday and Monday and that the situation was now under control. Security forces remained stationed outside the university premises on Monday morning.
The agitation broke out on Sunday when students alleged that an outsider had raped a female student inside the LPU campus.
In response to the students’ complaint, police have booked an unidentified accused in a rape case and constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to examine the allegations. The university, meanwhile, dismissed assertions that the incident took place within its campus as “rumours”.
By Sunday evening, the demonstration had turned violent. Students reportedly came into conflict with police, pelting stones at officers and their vehicles, which resulted in injuries to several policemen. Earlier, police had moved to clear the protesters who had been holding up NH-44 since 8 am.
Following a lathi charge by police, the students retreated into the campus, but allegedly kept throwing stones at law-enforcement personnel, officials said.
Late on Sunday night, a substantial police contingent under ADGP M F Farooqui entered the university grounds, after which senior officers and forces conducted a flag march. Among those on the scene were Jalandhar Police Commissioner Satinder Singh, DIG (Jalandhar Range) Naveen Singla and Kapurthala SSP Gaurav Toora, as reported by The New Indian Express.
Classes Suspended, Exams Postponed
The university administration has ordered a 10-day suspension of classes from Monday and deferred all midterm exams indefinitely. Students may leave for home after consulting their parents or guardians; those who stay back have been instructed to confine themselves to their hostels or residences and avoid any non-essential movement.
This outbreak of unrest at LPU occurred just one day after a separate episode at Chitkara University in Patiala, where students allegedly set a police vehicle on fire over unverified reports that two female students had taken their own lives on campus.
Video clips spreading on social media platforms showed demonstrators allegedly vandalising campus assets — breaking window panes and flower pots — and igniting some objects while shouting slogans demanding justice.