Govt inquiring into violence in SMIT campus: Minister

The government is conducting a separate inquiry into the violence in the Sikkim Manipal Institute of Technology (SMIT) campus in which seven students were injured, a state minister said today.

The government is conducting a separate inquiry into the violence in the Sikkim Manipal Institute of Technology (SMIT) campus in which seven students were injured, a state minister said today.

HT Image

"We are conducting an inquiry into the violence in the SMIT campus resulting in injuries to several students and the subsequent closure of the institute for some days... those found guilty will be severely punished," Sikkim Human Resources Development Minister N K Pradhan told reporters here.

The inquiry by the HRD officials will be a separate from one being carried out by the SMIT, Pradhan said.

Apparently stung by the outcry in the media to bring disrepute to the name of a peaceful state like Sikkim, the minister said that the state government will also seek a role for itself in the administration and management of the private institute.

As per the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the state government and Sikkim Manipal University (SMU), the administrative matters solely rested with the institute, but going by the sordid incidents in which the management has been found wanting, the former may seek a role for itself for better governance of the institute, Pradhan said.