Protests at Lovely Professional University (LPU) in Punjab’s Phagwara escalated into clashes between students and police on Sunday after students alleged that a female student was raped on campus by an outsider.

Students blocked NH-44 outside the university from around 8 am and later clashed with police. Officials said protesters pelted stones at police personnel and damaged and set fire to vehicles. Several police personnel were injured.

A large police force led by ADGP M F Farooqui entered the campus later in the evening, with officials saying the situation had been brought under control.

LPU has suspended classes for 10 days from Monday, while midterm examinations have been postponed until further notice.

Police said an FIR has been registered against an unknown person based on a complaint by students and a special investigation team (SIT) has been formed. DIG (Jalandhar Range) Naveen Singla said investigators would examine forensic samples, CCTV footage and call records before reaching a conclusion.

Students alleged that a female student staying in Girls’ Hostel-3 was raped by a plumber three days earlier and that the hostel warden was informed but no action was taken.

The university denied the allegations, describing them as rumours. Registrar Monica Gulati said certain elements were spreading “false, baseless and fabricated” claims. The university also released a video statement by three female students from the hostel who said no rape incident had taken place.

Protests continued throughout the day, with students allegedly vandalising campus property and blocking the national highway. Police said four to five police vehicles were damaged and two were set on fire.

Several rounds of talks between students and university management remained inconclusive. Students demanded that LPU Founder-Chancellor Ashok Mittal visit the protest site, that their access to the University Management System not be blocked and that they not face action for participating in the protest.

Singla said the alleged victim had returned to her home after students claimed no action was taken. He added that the investigation would involve student representatives.

The protests also followed reports of a student from Telangana dying by suicide at LPU around 15 days earlier. Singla said action would be taken if the students provided evidence of foul play.

LPU Vice Chancellor Jaspal Singh said the university was not aware of any rape incident but would cooperate with the investigation.

The incident comes a day after protests at Chitkara University in Patiala over unverified claims concerning the deaths of two female students.

Inputs from PTI

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