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Allahabad University violence: Amit Shah condemned assault on students, says BJP MLC
BJP MLC from the Prayagraj district, Surendra Chaudhary, met the Union home minister on Thursday, three days after violence erupted due to private guards manning the varsity gate stopping a few students from entering the campus.
PRAYAGRAJ: Days after violence broke out on the Allahabad University campus in Prayagraj over fee hike, BJP MLC from the district, Surendra Chaudhary, met Union home minister Amit Shah and Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan in New Delhi on Thursday. In two separate meetings, Chaudhary briefed the two Union ministers on the issue.
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The development comes after violence erupted due to private guards manning the varsity gate stopping a few students from entering the campus on December 19. The home minister was told that the violence broke out in response to the recent varsity administration decision to implement a four-fold fee hike. The decision has caused resentment among students, who have been protesting against the hike for months now. However, the varsity administration has been unable to take them into confidence, said Chaudhary.
“This violence was the outcome of the anger brewing among students over fee hike,” said MLC Chaudhary. He added, “Amit Shah condemned the assault on students while adding that big decisions should be implemented through dialogue and communication. He also pointed out that the BJP remains sensitive to the cause of students.” Separately, in his meeting with Dharmendra Pradhan, Chowdhary sought his intervention to pacify the situation.
Meanwhile, when asked to comment on the episode, Professor Jaya Kapoor, public relations officer, Allahabad University, said, “Outsiders indulging in vandalism is unacceptable. Those agitating are not students. Therefore, holding discussions with them is out of the question. The university is in constant touch with district administration officials who are closely monitoring the situation. A police investigation in the matter is ongoing.”
Police scanning CCTV footage to collect evidence
To identify the accused who assaulted students of Allahabad University, police are scanning CCTV footage and mobile phone recordings of the violence that broke out on the varsity campus on December 19. Attempts are also being made to identify those involved in arson and damaging vehicles.
The investigation is being handled by DCP city Santosh Kumar Meena, ACP Shivkuti Rajesh Yadav, and SHO of Colonelganj police station Ram Mohan Rai. The involvement of outsiders involved in damaging property and torching vehicles is also being probed.
Cooperating with the investigation, several students have submitted their recordings of the incident to the police. While a few eye-witnesses have claimed that guards fired shots, no such video clip has surfaced so far.
Following the incident, an FIR was lodged against eight students -- Vivekananda Pathak, Rahul Patel, Ajay Samrat, Abhishek Yadav, Navneet Singh, Harendra Yadav, Ayush Priyadarshi and Satyam Kushwaha -- on December 19. The FIR, based on the complaint filed by security guard Prabhakar Singh, was filed under IPC sections 147 (rioting), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 336 (endangering life or personal safety of others), 427 (mischief causing damage), 435 (mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to cause damage), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), and 392 (robbery).
Police have also lodged a counter-FIR against security guards Prabhakar Singh, MK Pandey, Tarachand, and 40 of their unidentified colleagues. They have been booked for attempt to murder and other relevant sections of the IPC.
