A clash between two groups of students at CT Institute’s Shahpur campus in Jalandhar led to chaos among students and a heavy police deployment on the campus.
The incident reportedly began with a dispute over food and later escalated into a fight at the hostel, where windows were smashed and glass was scattered inside rooms and the incident also led to videos being circulated on social media, with students giving accounts of what happened.
Police officials, meanwhile, said the situation was brought under control and that CCTV footage would be examined before deciding further legal action.
According to the account given by a first-year student, the dispute started after he allegedly found a tablet and its wrapper in his food and the student said he took the food plate to the institute office to raise a complaint with teachers and management staff about the issue.
The student claimed that while he was returning from the office, an argument broke out with a Kashmiri student, who he alleged abused him and according to his account, the disagreement later escalated after he returned to the hostel.
The student alleged that two or three senior students from the other group confronted him and a fight broke out, he claimed that his friends then reached the spot and became involved in the confrontation and further alleged that he was hit with a rod during the scuffle and that another student grabbed him by the throat and hit his head against a wall.
These are allegations made by the student and have not been independently established.
The situation reportedly became more serious inside the hostel.
The student claimed that members of the other group arrived carrying rods and began smashing hostel windowpanes and according to him, a piece of broken glass hit his head during the incident. He said there were three students inside the room at the time and that they were frightened as the situation escalated and one of the students was allegedly bleeding from the head and hand.
The student said he contacted the hostel warden for help and according to his account, the warden intervened and helped them leave the area.
Videos related to the incident have also surfaced on social media.
At around 11 pm on Thursday, a student posted a video claiming that police were not present on the campus when the situation was unfolding and in the video, the student described what he said had happened during the clash, however, police officials gave a different account.
ACP Kulwinder Singh Virk said police personnel remained present at the campus throughout the night and said action would be taken against the students responsible for the disturbance after their individual roles are established.
Police are examining CCTV footage from the institute to identify the students involved and determine what happened during the clash.
Following the incident, a large police force was deployed at the CT Institute campus to prevent the situation from escalating further and according to police, an SP, three DSPs, three ARP teams and seven SHOs have been deployed at the location.
ACP Virk said around half of the police commissionerate force was deployed at the site.
The police presence was aimed at maintaining law and order and ensuring that no further confrontation took place between the student groups. ADCP (City) Madhavi Sharma also intervened after the situation became tense and helped restore calm on the campus, while SHO of Police Station No. 5 Yadvinder Singh said the dispute was related to food and there was no reason for panic. He said the situation had been brought under control.
DSP Kulwinder Singh Virk said the CCTV footage is being examined and legal action will be taken on the basis of the investigation. As the inquiry is still underway, police said no formal case has been registered against anyone at this stage, the students involved in the incident were pacified and sent back to their hostel rooms.
Police personnel continued to remain deployed on the campus to deal with any further situation.
The CCTV footage is expected to help investigators establish what happened during the confrontation and identify the specific students involved.
The institute said the incident was a moment of confusion among students and that the safety and security of students remained in place throughout.
The institute also said that no student was harmed, police, meanwhile, have maintained that the situation is under control and that any further action will depend on the findings of the investigation, for now, the exact sequence of events and the individual responsibility of students involved will be determined through CCTV footage and the ongoing police inquiry.